Filed to story: When Taken by the Dark Fate Free Online >>
As we parked, I craned my neck to see over the rest of the cars, my legs aching from the long drive. I was eager to leave the car and escape the oppressive weight that filled it. Outside, there were tents everywhere, covering every spare inch of ground, and I’d never seen this many people before in one place outside of a city. Excitement thrummed through me, mixing with the anxiety that had been building up for weeks. My entire fate rested on what happened at the Convergence.
I got out of the car and stretched the travel strain out of my body, taking in the sights and scents of the Montana forest around the campground. It reminded me a little of Cancer territory, although the trees were different here and there was no smell of saltwater in the air. A couple of wolves bounded past me into the forest, and I caught sight of the Aquarius pack mark on them before they slipped away.
I left my bag behind since it was so heavy, planning to come back for it later, and followed Dad and Jackie through the parking lot with Wesley at my side. I caught his eye as we wound through the cars. He grinned at me, excitement pouring off him. It was infectious enough that it chased away most of the anxiety.
“Lighten up, Ayla,” he said. “We’re here now.”
I nodded and relaxed a little. If he wasn’t nervous, I didn’t have to be, either. He’d been through this, and he’d be sure to pass on any important information to me. Besides, tomorrow I would finally get my wolf, allowing me to become my true self. There was no reason to be worried. Right?
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Jackie tossed over her shoulder. “All eyes will be on the alphas and their families. Especially Wesley, as the alpha heir.”
“Yeah, we wouldn’t want anyone to suspect we’re not the perfect nuclear family,” I said, sarcasm dripping off every word.
Dad spun around and lifted his hand like he was about to hit me, but then checked himself. He glanced around at all the people nearby, before speaking in a low growl. “Watch yourself, Ayla.” He infused power into the words, giving me an alpha command that wrapped around my throat like a vice, forcing me to obey. “Or you’ll regret it.”
“Dad, stop,” Wesley said, moving to stand at my shoulder. He couldn’t officially challenge our father, not unless he wanted to fight for the role of alpha. Which would probably leave one of them dead. I touched Wesley’s arm to show everything was okay—I couldn’t bear the thought of possibly losing him. Someday he would be alpha, but until then, I could handle it.
We kept walking, pretending nothing was wrong, but there would be no relaxing as long as I was around my parents. I couldn’t wait to get away from them. It was one of the perks of coming to the Convergence—I didn’t have to always hang around my pack. I’d get a taste of how it would be to live among people who didn’t hate my existence. Surely not every pack had the same toxic views toward half-human shifters. I knew I couldn’t be the only one to exist. The more we mingled with humans, the more likely we were to interbreed with them.
The closer we got, the less like a random jumble the tents became, and a pattern began to emerge. Banners were stuck into the ground with Zodiac symbols on them to represent the different packs. The campground had been divided into quadrants representing the four elements, and we headed to join the other water signs.
Winding in between the tents were hundreds of shifters in both human and wolf forms, all here representing each of the twelve packs. Shifters of all ages mingled with other packs than their own, sharing meals, laughing together, and dancing under the sun like they were at a music festival. I’d never felt such camaraderie between different pack members, even the ones who were on good terms. The Convergence was neutral ground, and no one had to be worried about potential schemes or any attacks. Fighting was prohibited here, and the Sun Witches made sure everyone stayed in line.
Dad pulled aside a Pisces shifter and asked him where we should set up, but I was too focused on trying to take everything in to listen to the details of their conversation. The male pointed toward the northern side of the clearing, all the way to the back. Dad nodded and we began working our way through the Pisces and Scorpio tents to the Cancer area.
I recognized more people than I thought I would. Many of the different alphas had visited our house for as long as I could remember. There was always business to attend to, figuring out land disputes, negotiating alliances, and distributing resources. The Cancer pack was one of the largest ones, and we were allied with the Pisces, Capricorn, and Aquarius packs. We’d had a long-standing rivalry—or worse—with the other largest pack, the Leos, along with their allies, the Aries, Taurus, and Scorpio packs. The remaining Zodiac Wolves—the Gemini, Virgo, Libra, and Sagittarius packs—all remained neutral at the moment, but alliances were constantly shifting and changing. By the end of the Convergence, it might all be different again.
We passed by the Aquarius and Pisces alphas deep in conversation, and before I could recall the last time I’d seen them both, Mira came running over. I paused, letting the rest of my family pull forward a little bit to give us the semblance of privacy. It wouldn’t do much, not with so many shifters around. Nonetheless, I’d never turn down an opportunity to distance myself from my parents
“Ayla,” she said, eyes shining as she danced around me, practically jumping out of her skin. “Can you believe how many shifters came this year?”
“No,” I said, grinning back at her. Her good mood was infectious, and despite the torturous fifteen hours I’d just spent in the car with Dad and Jackie, I cheered up. “It’s amazing. I knew there were a lot of shifters between the twelve packs, but seeing everyone together makes it feel like we could take on the whole world somehow.”
Mira lowered her voice and pulled me in closer to her. “Have you seen all the hotties here?” she asked, eyeing a group of younger Scorpio pack males as they passed by us, none of them wearing shirts. “Mmm, delicious. They’vecertainly been training.”
I laughed as one of them looked over and slanted a crooked grin at Mira. She glanced down demurely, but I could see the glee in her gaze. I opened my mouth to tell her that she wasn’t being as sneaky as she thought she was but thought better of it. Why ruin the fun? Almost everyone here already had their wolves, and they would hear even the lowest whisper.
As if to prove my point, Wesley glanced back at us with a smirk. He’d continued on with Dad and Jackie, but none of them were far enough ahead for Mira’s comment to have escaped them. Luckily, our parents were deep in conversation, but no such luck with my brother. Wesley rolled his eyes at me, but the grin on his face showed his amusement, and Mira’s face flushed with embarrassment. I looked between her and Wesley with raised brows. I’d suspected that she’d been crushing on my brother for some time, and she’d just confirmed it.
I shook my head. It wasn’t as if I could warn her off the scent. Wesley was a flirt, and everyone knew it. She’d have to deal with him on her own. He still hadn’t found his mate and made the most of it. I wondered if she secretly hoped they’d be mated tomorrow. Of course, half the fun of the Convergence was wondering who you’d be paired with at the mating ceremony—if you were paired at all.
“Come on,” I said. “Let’s set up our tents.”
Before I could move, someone shoved past me hard, nearly knocking me over. I stumbled forward, instincts kicking in just fast enough to stop me from falling. When I glanced up, a big, muscular guy with blond hair was walking past, along with his friends. He shot a look over his shoulder, and it was pure venom.
“Watch yourself,” he said. “Or better yet, stay out of the way.”
I gained my balance, rage sparking inside of me at the hateful tone like a Pavlovian response. I’d had more than enough of my own pack members talking to me like this my whole life. I’d come here to change that, to find the connection I’d been missing, and my first interaction with another pack member was someone who thought it was okay to treat me like the Cancer pack did. Fuck that.
“Watch where you’re going,” I snapped back. He’d already been walking away as if he didn’t expect me to say anything back to him, but at my words, he paused and turned back fully, eyes smoldering.
Damn, he was attractive. I found myself checking him out, even though I doubted we’d get along if he talked to strangers like he had done to me. He was tall, muscular, and sun-kissed, with blond hair that was right on the verge of being long and wild. He obviously spent a lot of his time throwing his weight around outside.
He looked me up and down, and then peeled his lips back in a snarl. “You’re the outcast in the Cancer pack, aren’t you? I’d recognize Harrison’s eyes anywhere, and you have your human mother’s hair.” He said the word humanlike it was dirty. Ah, yes, another reminder of home. Whichever pack he was a part of, I made a mental note to never associate with them.
I lifted my chin and faced him down. “And you’re just another bully who thinks it’s okay to pick on anyone you believe is beneath you. I don’t need your name. Your actions speak loud enough.”
Mira’s hand caught mine and tightened at the words. It was a silent warning. Careful. I didn’t want to be careful. Whoever this prick was, he could have a piece of my mind.
A low growl went through the group of males gathered around the guy, and the tension became palpable in the air. So much for keeping the peace. I’d managed to break it moments after stepping onto the campsite.
“Hey,” Mira said, stepping in front of me holding her free hand out in supplication. “No fighting here, remember? We’re on neutral ground.”
The guy shook his head, disgust pouring off of him almost tangibly. “You’re lucky we’re at the Convergence. Anywhere else, and I would have given your half-human friend there the beating she deserved.”
Something inside of me died at the words. I’d hoped that outside of the Cancer pack, my heritage wouldn’t be as big of a deal, but here I was, dealing with the same prejudices I’d encountered on a daily basis. I was never going to escape this shit, was I?
The guy gave me one more disgusted once-over before walking away. The other males fell into line with him, almost as if he was commanding them. This male was high up in the ranks of his pack, and it irked me that dicks like him got to be in power so often. With a sigh, I pushed the encounter out of my mind. Hopefully, I wouldn’t have to deal with him again.
Wesley jogged up to us, worry plain on his face. He put a hand on my shoulder and stared after the shifters. “What just happened?”
“Nothing,” I grumbled, tugging Mira forward. “He was a prick, I told him to shove off. The asshole didn’t know how to say ‘excuse me’ instead of ‘move out of my way’.”
“You shouldn’t mess with him.” Wesley’s hand tightened on my shoulder, going from comforting to a warning. When I glanced over at him, his eyes were serious. “That’s Jordan from the Leo pack.”
As I watched the retreating group, they turned off of the main path where the Leo banner was planted into the ground, an instant confirmation of Wesley’s words.
“Well, Jordan from the Leo pack needs to learn some manners,” I grumbled, turning away. “No matter how much he doesn’t like me, I’m still the daughter of an alpha. I get that Leos and Cancers hate each other, but this is the Convergence. We’re all supposed to be getting along. Trust a Leo to try to bring our clan rivalry into this.”
“You don’t get it,” Wesley said, his brow furrowed. “That’s Jordan Marsten. Next in line to be the alpha of the Leo pack. He’s not someone you want to fuck with. Stay away from him.”
That explained how he’d known exactly who I was. I shrugged Wesley’s hand off. “I’ll stay away as long as he leaves me alone. I want nothing to do with the Leos.”
When I was just a baby, the Cancer pack and the Leo pack had waged a war against each other until the other packs intervened and made them call a truce. There wasn’t a clear victor, and because of that, there was never any concrete resolution. The animosity still hung around between our packs like a dark cloud.
I’d spent my childhood listening to Dad rant about the Leo pack and its alpha. Apparently, Dixon Marsten was constantly plotting ways to undermine us, or better yet, take over our pack entirely. I didn’t know if it was fact or just Dad being paranoid. Both alphas refused to let the past go, always blaming anything bad that happened on the rival pack, and it perpetuated the old hatred. Dad was always scheming, half of his energy devoted to trying to deal with the Leo pack, once and for all. Almost every meeting he had at the house had something to do with gaining allies against the Leo pack or trying to get the neutral packs to join us. There were other rivalries among the rest of the twelve Zodiac packs, but no one had as many reasons to hate each other as Leo and Cancer did. Even the elements were natural enemies—fire and water.
I shook my head. I hadn’t been old enough to remember the worst of the war, so I didn’t understand the dynamic as well as other pack members did. I’d never seen the Leos actually do anything to us in years, but the scheming and manipulating and hatred continued. Maybe it was because I was an outcast of the pack, but I’d never understood why bygones couldn’t be bygones.
I followed Mira and Wesley to the Cancer banner. People were setting up tents almost everywhere we walked. The Convergence started tomorrow, during the summer solstice, and most people had arrived already, though some would trickle in during the night. We were lucky that the Convergence was relatively close to Cancer territory this year. To make it fair, the Sun Witches changed locations every time, rotating between six different spots so they didn’t show favoritism among the packs. At the previous winter solstice, the Cancer pack had to leave an entire day early just to make it on time, and they’d driven through the night.
As if thinking about the Sun Witches had conjured them into being, I watched as six women in flowing robes walked past. Shifters melted out of the way for them, falling silent and bowing their heads in respect. I could almost taste the difference in the air as they glided by. I sneaked glances at them as they passed, though it would have been better to just keep my eyes on the ground.
All the packs worshiped the sun god Helios and the moon goddess Selene, and the witches were concrete evidence of a connection to the divine. I’d never seen one in the flesh, but I’d been raised on tales of their astounding power as everyone had. They were allied with the Zodiac Wolves, unlike the Moon Witches, and it was terrifying to think what would happen if they weren’t.
One of the witches turned to look at me as she passed, her eyes such a pale color they seemed to absorb hues from the very air around her. My breath lodged in my throat, pulse pounding wildly. I couldn’t break her gaze. Something twisted inside of me, trying desperately to get out. It felt as if I’d been caught doing something wrong and my body was compelling me to shout it from the rooftops.
The moment passed, her eyes sliding over me almost as if I wasn’t there. My breathing eased, and the strange feeling vanished. I glanced over at Mira, who didn’t seem to be affected the same way I was. Maybe it was because I was half human? I shook my head and tried to put the weird feeling out of my mind. Maybe I was just being paranoid.
I sent a silent prayer after the witches anyway. They had a better connection to the gods than I could ever hope for and thus could twist fate around to their bidding. Whatever god might hear me, please let me be mated with someone in a pack that will treat me well. I just want my life to be better. It was a simple thing, so simple. Couldn’t I have this lucky break after years of being stuck in my own personal hell?
And if I didn’t get a mate… Well, at least I’d have my wolf and would be able to defend myself better. I’d become stronger and quicker, and if I was stuck in the Cancer pack, I could outrun and outsmart everyone who wanted to hurt me.
It would have to be good enough.