Rebirth of the Stormwolf

I slowly dropped the cracked mirror on the dresser. With my gaze still fixed on the hole in the wall, I took one final look at the hole, and my curiosity wouldn't let me stay still.

The hole was narrow, and my shoulders could barely pass through it, but the draft was to confirm that there was something ahead.

I slid in, but the passage was tighter than expected, the air thick with dust and ancient furniture.

The deeper I went, the colder it got; my heart was pounding and my wolf growled in distress.

There were no lights, no sound, just my bare feet padding against the stone floor and my heart racing.

A few steps further and I reached it, the metallic door I had seen, but up close it was a rusty iron door, framed with stones.

I hesitated for a second, scared of what lay beyond the closed door. When I couldn't wait anymore, I touched the handle, giving it a little push, and it slowly creaked open.

Moaning on the hinges like a growling beast, long undisturbed, immediately the door faced away, and a scent hit my nose, something damp, like old books or dried herbs or something, but I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was.

Inside the chamber was a small round room, the walls covered in faded writings and symbols. I couldn't make head or tail of what it was talking about.

There were stacked books on the floor, and at the center was a table with an object wrapped in a faded red cloth.

Curious, I moved closer, holding the tip of the cloth to see what lay behind it. I heard my wolf whimper.

"Don't touch it," I heard her purring into my ears, but it was already too late.

It felt like I was hypnotized, pulling the clothes before I had even realized it.

My eyes lit open at the crescent moon-shaped silver locket, with some ancient runes etched around its edges.

As soon as I lifted it, I felt a wave run through me, quick and weird. Like a wave of recognition, I shouldn't have.

I staggered back, clutching the locket, and flashes of memories hit me.

A fire, distant screams, and crying, Karen reaching for something glowing in the water.

Before I could realize it, the images were gone.

"No," I cried out, clutching the pendant tightly.

The memory came and went like a spark of lightning.

"What is this place?" I asked myself the moment it dawned on me that whatever it was I saw was because I was in there.

"Curious? Good, I heard a voice behind me. I turned instantly, heart racing and scared out of my guts.

But there was no one behind me. The chamber was empty with only me standing in it.

"Who... are... you?" I asked, stuttering in fear.

"Not all graves are marked with tombstones," the voice came again.

I fell to the ground. This could only mean one thing: I wasn't alone in here. Someone or something knew I found the chamber.

Breathing heavily, with my fingers clenching the pendant, I didn't dare move; I froze on the floor, begging the moon goddess to save me.

But then I heard it; the sound was unmistakable: footsteps. But when I peered into the darkness, I saw no one.

But still, I felt it, an undeniable presence.

The pendant pulsed in my hand, warm now, as if it was responding to something. My wolf stirred within me, alert and silent.

"Who's there?" I asked again, my voice barely audible.

There was nothing but silence, and then a flicker—a shadow moved across the chamber walls.

"Someone is here," I whispered. I got off the floor immediately and backed away from the door, moving towards the table. My heart racing, I scanned the room for a weapon, and my eyes rested on the iron rod in the corner.

I grabbed it tightly, waiting to launch an attack on whoever it was.

I heard the footsteps again, but they were slower this time and stopped abruptly.

Then came the voice again, male, but it was also low this time.

"You shouldn't be here," gripping the rod and frantically looking around and trembling in fear.

"Show yourself," I spat out.

Immediately a figure appeared from the shadow, hooded, cloaked in a faded brown, his face obscure in the shadows, although veiled, but I could feel the weight of his eyes.

I couldn't sense his wolf, and that terrified me more than anything.

He stepped closer but not threateningly, his gaze buried at the pendant I was clutching in my hand.

"You touched it," he said, looking shocked. I looked from him to the locket, and I didn't say a thing.

Exhaling slowly, he pulled back the hood. I gaped, staring at the ghost standing in front of me.

I swear I had seen a portrait with this face hanging somewhere in the pack house while the guard led me to this tomb.

He was the Alpha I saw with his portrait turned upside down, dead for decades.

"Orin Stormwolf," I whispered internally, the name I saw written under his portrait.

"You shouldn't be alive," I whispered, staring at him confused.

"And yet here I stand," he gave a wicked smile. Scaring me even more.

"Who are you?"

"I was once the alpha of this pack before I was betrayed and buried in its secrets." My blood turned to ice.

"Now, I merely guard what remains of the truth," eyes narrowing.

"This place had remained shrouded for decades, but you found it, which can only mean one thing."

I swallowed hard. "It means what?"

"The pendant chose you." I looked down at the pendant glowing faintly in my hand.

"What is it?" I asked him, looking at the pendant.

"Something that should have been long forgotten, like you."

He tilted his head slightly to the side, looking at me like some puzzle.

"You aren't just a rogue girl with guilt in her heart; you are the thread that pulls everything loose."

A cold shiver ran down my spine, and I trembled.

Before I could even say another word, he began walking back into the shadow.

"Wait," I yelled out, and he paused.

"What do I do with it?"

"Keep it hidden, for the sake of your life; tell no one, especially her," he said and vanished into the darkness.

"Who?" I yelled briskly.

"You will know," I heard his voice in the air, and then silence.

I stood at the center of the room, confused, staring at the locket in my arm when a knock jolted me back to reality.

"Shit!" I screamed and hurriedly ran out of the chamber.

I maneuvered my way out of the passage, and the minute I was out of the hole, I placed the back mirror where it belonged, stuffing the locket in my pocket.

"Come in," I said, sighing in relief.

A maid bearing a platter of food pulled open the door; the look of terror etched on her face was disturbing.

Without being told, I could tell she was scared of the room.

"I... I brought dinner," she stuttered. I didn't say a word but just watched as she placed the platter on the dresser. I noticed she had clean bedsheets.

She dropped them all and vanished out of the room, leaving the door open as she walked away, but I heard her stop abruptly just outside the door. She lingered for a couple of minutes before she continued walking.

I sighed, grateful that I wasn't caught.

"Don't get any stupid ideas." His words played in my head. I went over to the dresser, picked up the sheets, and began making my bed.

When I was done, I packed the dirty old ones at the corner and was admiring my work when a voice startled me from behind.

"I like what you have done with the place." I turned to his gray eyes glowing in the dark hallway.

Of course, he came to see how broken I had become; he sent me to this side, a forgotten part of the pack house, to crash and burn; he couldn't stay away till he got the satisfaction he craved.

But I would rather die than give him the satisfaction of seeing me crash.

"Would have invited you in, but there is only room for one."

My wolf growled within me as the mate bond kept tugging at me.

The glowing gray emerged from the darkness but stopped at the door, just close enough to see him well in the light.

He chuckled wickedly. "Brace yourself, little wolf; it gets crazier at night."

I froze when I heard him say that but quickly masked my fear; I wasn't going to let him know that I was scared.

"Thank you for the heads-up." I cleared my throat, hoping he didn't catch on yet.

"Good, enjoy," he smirked, whistling as he walked away.

"He is just messing with me," I reassured myself and shut the door. I turned around to see a cat sitting on the window. I froze. It ran to the death trap of a window and disappeared.