Lyra's Bane

Anacostia raced up the mountains in her wolf form, her eyes thick as the night and yet so bright they cut through the darkness. She soon got to a clearing at the top where she shifted into her human form. A man was there waiting for her, he hid behind the shadows of the trees but his size was perceptible still. He had already left some clothes for her to put on, which she did.

"Why summon me high up here? I'm sure a phone call or a meeting in your parlour would have sufficed for this conversation."

"I assure you, it would not." His voice shook with the trees being carried by the wind.

"Well, colour me amused. So, what was so important I had to run up a mountain for."

"The pack!" His voice went up an octave. "The pack is dying under weak leadership."

"You dare utter such treasonous words! You are Beta, and should be unwaveringly loyal." She growled at him.

"Open your eyes child! The Alpha and his so-called successor, his cowardly son… must die. And so will any who stands with them."

The sun was seated high in the pale blue sky with graduation caps flying high trying to reach it but falling back down to the hands of their throwers, the graduating class of 2023. Excitement was the mask of the day, graduates celebrating and parents celebrating with them. But none was as excited as Lyra who felt like the luckiest girl in the world. It had been one landmark after the other for her; she turned 24 two weeks ago and her guardians threw a hell deafening party for her.

But there was a hole luck could not fill, that of a parent. Lyra was orphaned when she was 12, her parents and brother murdered in front of her as a result of the Laurent Struggle, a war that was fought between three powerful alphas for the territorial claim of Laurent City. A war which Lyra's parents fervently defended the Buckwill name and lost their lives for it. Since then she's lived with the Buckwils, the alpha's family who's only child, Glen, she's long developed an affection for. She looked around and saw parents taking pictures with their graduating children, families holding hands. She might not have parents but the boy she loves was coming home, he schooled in another city but was now done. She got into her car, a yellow Chevy and drove off.

On getting to the mansion she called home, the Buckwill residence, she saw a Tesla parked in front of the house… she was so excited, it was Glen's car. She quickly parked, barely, and jumped out the car, running into the house looking around for him.

"Glenny! Glenny!" She sang his name as she walked through the corridors.

She opened his room door but it was empty, same as it had been for the past 6 months. She ran to the Alpha's room, knocking on it several times but there was no answer so she just opened the door. It was also empty, she was disappointed and yet confused.

"Where is everyone?" She soliloquized.

"Right here!" A sharp low but audible voice rang from behind her, giving her a scare that caused her to swing her elbow backwards, striking the speaker's throat with it.

Glen began choking hard, he held his neck trying to breathe, scared that something might have been broken.

"Jeez Glenny, what have I told you about sneaking up on me? What the heck?" She scolded him as he fell on his knees still choking.

She knelt by him worried she'd crushed his windpipe, but after a few seconds he got better. Although his throat was still hurting.

"What in the moon's shadow has gotten into you?" He let out when he could finally speak.

"You startled me."

"I can see that. Where is everyone?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." She asked in confusion."

"By the moon goddess, you're more beautiful than the last time I saw you." He flattered her.

Lyra blushed, she couldn't even look straight into Glen's eyes. A lot of things were storming through her mind to say, something to throw of the mojo that was sparking between them, she even thought of talking about the Cross, a ritual they had to do that night but she couldn't bring herself to do it, she had loved him for as long as she could remember, it was no hidden fact, but she had done nothing about it… Now, she decided not to do nothing, to keep her luck rolling, franchising. She leaned forward and kissed him. After a few seconds he slowly pulled away, not in a resistive manner, just in a doubtful manner.

"Lyra." He called her softly and she placed her index finger on his lip, silencing him and then kissed him again, this time more passionately and he mirrored that passion. He got up and lifted her as he did, still kissing her, he carried her into his parents room and closed the door behind him.

Anacostia 'Nightbane' Peckerwood, a frightening terror in the lycan world walked into the Buckwill mansion as though it was hers, confident, unwavering, as though she knew there was no one around… None except the two owners of the cars she saw in front of the house. She was of the Peckerwood family, the strongest in Buckwill's pack, presumably even stronger than the Buckwill family. Yet they were inarguably deemed the most loyal family in the pack.

She went directly to the Alpha's room and opened the door. Lyra and Glen were asleep, covered in bedspreads and in each other's arms. She walked slowly towards the bed, not making a sound but Lyra's eyes opened, spotting a blurry figure close by she jumped off the bed in fear that that was the Alpha or even Luna, grabbing her clothes that were on the floor to shield her bare body. Glen also woke up, still covered with the bedspread just laid there in shock. They were first relieved to see the person standing there wasn't any of Glen's parents, but then a new kind of fear crept in when they saw the beautiful killer of a 32 year old standing there.

"Anacostia! What are you doing in the room of your Alpha?" Glen tried to summon some courage.

"I could ask you the same question, both of you."

"I–"

"Get dressed before someone else comes around," she interrupted him. "I could smell you both from the gate, stinking of estrogen and testosterone. I'll be waiting in the sitting room, The Cross is about to begin and I will be your guide."

She walked away and the duo hurriedly put their clothes on, too ashamed to even look at each other or revel in the ecstasy of what just happened between them. Lyra quickly walked out of the room with her head down, Glen tried to say something but the words couldn't escape his mouth. He felt bad for letting her go like that. But he too had to go, so he also got dressed and exited the room. Anacostia was waiting in the sitting room helping herself to an apple when Glen walked in but Lyra wasn't there.

"Give her a minute." Anacostia said when he wanted to go look for her. He sat beside her, his heart beating in loud scattered rhythms. "What did you do?" She asked.

"What?" He asked in confusion.

" I can barely put a thought together with your heart beating as loud as the Krakatoa eruption. So, what did you do that's making you so uneasy?"

"Nothing!"

"Okay." She spoke with so much indifference and rested her back proper on the couch.

"Okay!" He couldn't hold it in. "She told me she loves me and I didn't know what to say."

"Whew! You sure know how to put vinegar in a good milkshake."

Lyra walked into the room and they all went silent. She had tied her hair in a ponytail and changed to a short sleeve tee shirt and jean shorts. She walked to the door without looking at either of them, indicating that they should be on their way.

"Well, there's been a recent addition to The Cross ritual." Anacostia said with a hellish smile and crossed her legs. "I'm not here to take you to The Cross. It begins now, I am your predator and you two are the prey. You will try to survive me hunting you while making the cross. And as such, I give you a two minute head start. Let's see if you can survive Nightbane. And note, you could die in this ritual."