Royal War: Sequel to Royal Secret

Chapter 1

I laid sprawled on the ground gasping for air to fill my lungs. My tormentor towered over me taunting me with swift kicks to my shins causing me to flinch.  Why didn't he just end it and get it over with?

"Come on, princess." he sneered. "I thought you were some bad ass fighter? Look at you groveling at my feet like a pathetic dog." His foot reared back kicking me in my stomach. I had time to avoid the kick but what was the point. He won! I was a shell of my former self, remembering when I could've brought this asshole down in a couple of moves. But that was then and this is now. Now I'm nothing. My cousin, Sebastian, made sure of that when he dropped me from the cliff and literally broke every bone in my body. The flash of metal reminded me of where I was. I rolled over before the cold steel already stained with my blood could take another chunk out of my skin. "Ah, so you're still awake. Are you going to get up and fight or take a nap?"

Anger stirred in me at his degrading words. I staked my sword into the ground and pulled myself up into a standing position. I wobbled a little as I pulled the sword from the ground hoisting it in front of me with both hands wrapped around the hilt. I took a defensive stance and brace myself for the attack. The attack was unrelenting and there was nowhere I could escape. I raised the sword over my head to stop the momentum of his sword. I pushed his sword away stumbling back from the sheer force of the hit. I barely had time to lift my sword to block another slash towards my midsection. This went on for a couple of more minutes, my reaction time becoming slower with each attack. I found it harder and harder to lift my arms. My vision was blurred by the stinging trail of sweat that dripped down my face. Wiping the sweat out of my eyes  was the opening my tormentor needed. I yelped in pain as his blade slashed through my forearm.

"That's enough!" Keagan yelled. I wanted to kiss him for ending this farce of a training.

"It's enough when when I say it's enough!" my tormentor tosses back to Keagan.

"You have that wrong, Korin. This is my territory and I say you're done." I heard a rip of material and then Keagan was wrapping my arm. I winced as he tied off the bandage which turned out to be part of his shirt. A few of Keagan's warriors popped down from the trees in a standoff against Korin;low growls permeating from their throats. It was an uneasy alliance between Korin, an alpha, and Keagan and his people who were rogues.  Keagan's warrior still didn't trust having an alpha staying in their camp fearing that one day Korin will call his pack here to destroy them.

"She is my mate and that makes her mine to do with whatever I want.  " Korin, my tormentor, growled.

"Then act like her mate! Can't you see she is in pain. She needs to rest."

"What she needs is to get up and fight. Not act like a scared little rabbit being hunted. Dammit Celina wake up! Where is the cocky and feisty warrior I met over a month ago. Where's that woman on a mission to take back the kingdom that was ripped from her by her uncle? And call off your dogs, or I will rip their heads off if they continue to challenge me!" Korin ended on low menacing words taking a step towards the rogues.

I had silently watched the two men yelling back and forth over me. Keagan, my new found protector, who found me washed up on shore half dead weeks ago and Korin, my mate. My reluctant mate who has struggled with accepting who I was, a Queen wolf.   Although we recognized each other as mates we were not fully mated. That act rested solely on Korin who was still angry at me about Trevor. Ahhhh Trevor, if only he was here now with the rest of my high guard.

"Celina! Are you even listening to anything that I'm saying?" I looked at Korin with a blank stare knowing that I tuned out the argument in front of me. I knew that Korin tried to say hurtful things to get a rise out of me, but I was just too tired to care.

"Get her out of my sight. This is not working." I didn't respond to Korin and allowed Keagan to guide me back to my tent. I hobbled back with the support of Keagan in silence. It has been two weeks since I was literally brought back from the dead and awoke in Korin's arm.  And in those two weeks, I had to learn to retrain my whole body.  Teaching my  muscles how to move, stand, and walk.  My energy was almost back to normal and now it was just getting my body back to the fighting machine it once was. Korin believed that I was fine but just scared to push myself to the limit. Afraid that I would end up back being helpless.  He equated me to an athlete who had major surgery and after intense therapy they were timid when they got back on the field.  Scared that they may re-injure themselves, therefore doing permanent damage.  I don't know about that.  But what I did know was that I felt helpless.  Although my body has recovered, my wolf hasn't.  I have felt no link to my wolf ever since I woke up.  My confidence was definitely gone and without the strength from her, how can I fight?  Without my wolf, I was not on the same playing field as I use to be.  Hell a normal wolf could probably take me down.

"Celina? Celina?" Keagan's snapping fingers in my face brought me out of my trance-like state.  He sighed.  I knew I was about to be on the end of one of his uplifting speeches. "Talk to me?"

"Huh?" Whoa, no speech? Surprising.

I was sitting on the bed and Keagan pulled a chair facing me holding onto my hands. "What's going through your mind?" He unwrapped the impromptu bandage and turning my arm over and saw that my wound had healed.

"I can't do it. I can't be the queen." I stared down at his hands.

"Why?" Damn, I think I rather sit through his uplifting speeches than this.

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me." Silence filled the room for a few minutes.

"I can't feel her, my wolf."Keagan didn't reply just squeezed my hand to continue. "How can I be queen if I don't have my wolf. I'm useless."

"You're not useless, Celina.  There is more to you than your wolf. Intelligence, experience and yes, even though I've only heard about it, a warrior. Don't sell yourself short."

I stood up abruptly walking towards the table to pour water in a cup. I let Keagan words swim around my head before turning around to face him. "I hear you but you don't understand.  In order for me to be truly the queen, I need my wolf.  The wolf is what connects me and all of the other queen wolves of each continent around the world to the moon goddess.  She is the source of our power.  Without it, I am nothing."

"You told me that if Korin let you mark him first then you will be a full queen. So there's your answer." Keagan prodded.

I sighed, "Yes that's true. But you don't get it, I have to be linked to my wolf first. No wolf, no turning into the queen wolf.  So no point in mating." I laughed sarcastically. "Even though Korin would be happy to know that and just mark me first and make me the luna of his pack.  He really wants no part of making me queen."

"I think you are wrong there, Celina.  He has been busting his ass to get you to train harder and to fight. If he just wanted to make you his luna, he would have done it by now." Keagan stood up from the chair. "Just think about what I said.  You've been through a hell of a lot and I'm sure in time your wolf will return.  So you need to be ready, physically and mentally." 

Keagan left me on that note. Trevor.  I rushed out of the tent and called for Keagan. He turned around retracing his steps back to the entrance of my tent. "Have you heard anything yet from Colin?"

"No, something must be up.  I sent out a couple of more people a few days ago to see what happen." I nodded my thanks and reentered the tent.  Hmmm, something must have happen to prevent Trevor and my high guard to come to me.  I pray to the moon goddess that they are safe.

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