The Wolf's Call to the Moon Ch. 05

He was bluffing. None of the Risens know what was hidden in the other tomb so how could a lowly dog know? Jamie had had a theory that it contained the heir of the Forbidden One but with the discovery of Mallory, that went down the drain.

Yuli still had the tomb; the one so beautifully carved and polished. He had planned for Mallory to open it but she was proving to be difficult. Perhaps it would be wise to gleam something from the Light Walkers in exchange for a history lesson.

"The Lord was the only Ancient to have created bloodlines -thirteen - that you know today as Risens. It was forbidden you see, to recreate life, but the Lord does what he wants and for that they cast him out of their sanctum. From then on, they refer to him as the Forbidden One and so have we."

Jean-Pierre paled. Other Ancients? He had no idea of the hierarchy of Risen lineage.

"How was the tomb opened? Don't try and bullshit with me Yuli. I examined it and I saw blood. Was it a human sacrifice?"

A look of pure venom and disgust crossed the Risen's face. "We are not savages, you fool! Blood was given willingly, out of curiosity, of love... of whatever emotion you want to believe in."

Jean-Pierre remained silent as various questions riddled his thoughts. The blood sample had to be rushed to the lab. Trace the blood, find the instigator right?

"I've told you what you needed to know. Now it's your turn."

"Come with me. My Alpha will be the best person to tell you."

It's a trap thought Yuli as he entered the sunny chambers of the Alpha named Alexander Glas.

He looked barely older than 40 years old, the modern garb of jeans and shirt making him appear laidback and casual. So unlike what Yuli would imagine as an Alpha.

"So I understand you have been forthcoming with Jean-Pierre here about the tomb, though you are still keeping secrets from us. Do you wish to have that tracer tag with you for eternity?" Alexander tapped his fingers together; his eyes focused solely on Yuli.

"The Forbidden One is looking for his companion tomb and this will be the first place he'll visit. Expect death, lots of death. Oh he wouldn't kill you straight away but in a week, a month, a year later your brain suddenly switches off and you're dead."

Alexander wasn't taking the bait. "If he is all powerful, then he would know that what he seeks is not here. It has been taken from him by his own brethren has it not?"

Yuli blinked back in surprise. Surely this Light Walker does not know the truth of what he has done? No, he was merely bluffing.

"He who displeases him can only hope for a swift death." That was all he was saying about the matter. "Now, why don't you tell me what is inside the other tomb and I may possibly help you avert a disaster with the Forbidden One?"

"You bring the tomb to me first and I will tell you."

"I know not where it is!"

Alexander considered the Risen carefully. If this companion tomb was indeed that important to the awakened Risen, then it must be a useful tool for control and negotiation - something that the Light Walkers would find useful.

"I will grant you your freedom and more money than you could possibly imagine, if you can bring me the tomb within the next 24 hours. Should you fail, Jean-Pierre here will hunt you down and your status as our spy will be revealed to your kind."

Yuli bared his incisors at the Alpha Light Walker, growling at the threat. He needed to be smarter.

Bring the tomb you say? Sure. The Alpha didn't specify that it mustn't be empty...

***

His next stop was the dungeons. After promising to report to Jean-Pierre every five hours, he disappeared like a puff of smoke, making his way down the winding tunnels; barely visible in the dark.

The Light Walker had lied to him. They did not know the contents of the tomb and yet they sought to tame it. Yuli looked at his watch. An hour down.

The tunnels were proving to be more complex than he had thought. Navigating them was one thing but bypassing their security was another. Often he had to wait until a Light Walker guard tapped in before he could squeeze through the gap of the door unnoticed.

This deep underground, his senses were dulled and though he tried to focus the image of Clay in his head, his mind refused to teleport him directly to the captive.

That was when he heard it - a low guttural growl like the deep breathing of Darth Vader.

Ah, the wolf. No wonder. Yuli was not expecting Clay to revert to his animal self but in such dire circumstances, perhaps the wolf was better at survival than the human form.

The wolf was pressing his nose against the bars, his canines exposed - a painful promise. His claws were out, pawing the bars; the sound of his nails scrapping the metal making a screeching sound.

"Please, stop. I am here to get you out. I need you. Mallory needs you."

At the sound of her name, the wolf stopped its aggression, retreating into the darkness. Yuli took that as a sign that he was willing to listen. But what happened next, caught him by surprise.

Instead of the unshaven black haired man he was expecting, a petite blonde reappeared in the dim lighting.

"Who the fuck are you? Where's Clay? Is he in the cage too?"

Sophie looked at the Risen, recognising his scent from their previous encounter. It seemed like he had forgotten who she was but Sophie couldn't blame him.

Prison life had made her gaunt and dirty. And keeping up with the physical illusion as Clay had zapped away most of her energy.

"Get me out of here and I will bring you to him," she croaked; one hand reaching out to the Risen.

"What the hell..." Yuli cursed under his breath. How could they have put this woman in a cage? Animals!

Placing his hand over hers, he allowed the smoke to surround them both; his mind focused on the shabby shack halfway across the globe.

Sophie wasn't sure what was happening but her body felt like it had been split into a million molecules; each with its own consciousness. She could feel her arms, her legs - or what should be her limbs - tingling as though it was stroked with claws. It was neither painful nor unpleasant but definitely strange. Her eyes could not see but she registered the light frequencies around her, the swirling intensity of streetlights and then it was completely bright.

When she opened her eyes, she was sitting face to face with Mallory.

"Sophie?" Turning to Yuli, Mallory began to claw at him with as much strength as she could. "Why did you bring her here! Are you planning on some perverse harem with the two of us?"

Yuli looked at both women with disinterest. Mallory did bring up an interesting proposition but for a Risen of his age and strength, there wasn't much that could make his blood boil as food and sex once had.

"I have done my end of the deal. Now you tell me where the Light Walker is." His onyx eyes looking straight at Sophie.

"He will be looking like me but with brown hair."

Yuli was not expecting that. But before could comment further, Mallory jumped in. "What? How can he look like you? Explain!"

"Professor... I mean, Mallory, I suppose by now you understand that both Mr Smokescreen here and I are not... human."

"Yes yes I know he's a Vampire, you're a Werewolf. Move along."

Sophie cringed a little but whether or not she wanted to, Mallory was embroiled in this mess. Better equip her with the knowledge than leave her stranded with doubts.

"Each of us has a special ability. For example, I can alter my looks to be whoever I want. Clay it appears, also possesses this ability. We swapped places so that he could go and look for you. Though... he failed it seems"

"Alright, enough chit-chat," said Yuli, taking both women by the wrists. "I get it. Now, I need you both to start figuring out how to open this box. Whoever opens it first gets to live."

"Tomb you mean," corrected Mallory.

"Whatever. Just get to work. You have twelve hours."

And then he was gone.

***

Sophie looked over at Mallory as the historian pondered over the artefact. Surely she would be the one to crack it open -after all, she did this for her living.

"It's a shame that we didn't study this one in greater detail," said Mallory absently. "Who would have guessed that underneath the outer layer laid a tomb this intricate?"

"Is it Egyptian?" asked Sophie, turning instantly red at Mallory's raised eyebrows. "I am obviously not a history student."

But Mallory merely shook her head and laughed; her voice gentle even as she corrected her student.

"The tombs were buried in Anatolia under the Lycian rites and customs and I finally figured out why." Mallory traced a finger along the symbols spiralling towards the centre. "You see, the Lycians were the only civilisation at that time that valued women more than men. This tomb here is a dedication to a great mother, whose death rendered her husband without meaning nor purpose."

"Wow. Are you saying he built this for her?"

Mallory nodded, pointing to a specific symbol at the outermost tip of the bowl-shape recess. "These engravings are harpies -motifs often depicted as evildoers; a female monster. But the Lycians, draw them in this ovoid-shaped manner, revering the womb of which all children come from.

I must say it is rather poetic - to describe the death of your wife as robbing the earth of a generation of children."

Sophie watched as the historian sank down on her knees with a sigh.

"But... the Risen who was awakened from the other tomb did not sound like the kind to be romantic," said Sophie.

In fact, by the sheer destruction he had caused, he had to be a very powerful being. Sophie was also aware that the thirteen elders had congregated just to witness his resurrection.

"Maybe he is just misunderstood," whispered Mallory; her eyes going slightly glossy. "I had seen in person the state of his tomb. It was nothing of the grandeur bequeathed to this one."

Sophie held her tongue. Perhaps it was the way that Mallory was caressing the tomb or the melancholic tinge in her voice that brought her pause. Something about these tombs caused a deep sadness to the human historian.

Not wanting to cause her further discomfort, Sophie turned to the other woman and brought up the topic that caused her acute sadness.

"I think you would be able to reach out to Clay... if you just call him." At Mallory's shocked face, Sophie knew she had to continue; had to say the words to seal the truth. "We Lightwalkers -Werewolves if you like, choose one person to mate for the rest of our lives."

"Like a spouse?"

Sophie had to hold back her laugh. "Oh no! More than that. A mate is someone who completes the other - a soulmate if you will -but more. If I had to be romantic about it, I'd say, it would be your opposite yet your entirety in another gendered form."

Mallory looked sceptical. Sophie couldn't blame her. The topic of mates was always a difficult subject for those who were never raised in the packs.

Sure, some wolves take human mates and it was acceptable but they always found it a difficulty to have their mates accept the bond when they have no comprehension of what it was.

"So what you're saying is that I'm Clay's... mate. And that I can somehow communicate telepathically with him?" Mallory's face scrunched in confusion. "But then why hasn't he contacted me already? Hello? Helloooo..."

She couldn't hold it anymore. Sophie burst out laughing at the sight of Mallory reaching out to Clay with an imaginary receiver. After a full minute, the professor slumped and raised her hands up in the air in surrender.

"I don't get it. Come on; show me how you do it!"

"Eh?" Blue eyes met olive ones. "Well... I can't."

"Why not?"

Sophie shuffled her feet some before turning away. "Well... because I'm not mated yet."

At first there was silence. Then she sensed the human coming closer, hoping to provide what? Comfort? Pity? Sophie didn't need that to be honest. Some of Lightwalkers were lucky to find theirs at a young age but some... they roam the world for decades searching but never finding.

"Well, doesn't mean you can't enjoy the non-mates while you can!" exclaimed Mallory.

Now that - she wasn't expecting.

"Did you?" asked Sophie, almost shyly. "I mean, I've seen the way Professor Jamie Record looks at you. Now that man wants to eat you up!"

"Please. He's not my type." Mallory rolled her eyes. "He's just using me."

"He's a Risen you know."

Mallory raised an eyebrow and pursed her lips. "I figured. There was a moment in our relationship - I'm talking about the work one; yes stop laughing! -where I was sure he was controlling my mind. I couldn't remember things and sometimes I was made to remember something that never happened."

Sophie nodded. A Risen with subterfuge abilities could do that.

"I don't suppose Clay could do that? It would be a shame if everything that happened was a lie..."

The Lightwalker watched as the human looked up and away; pensive for a moment. Sophie should say something. After all, true mates did not use their abilities on each other but then again, Sophie did not know Clay at all. He was an enigma and for that he intrigued her.

"We don't actually know who or what he is. The Lightwalkers all belong to at least one clan but Clay..."

"He's a lone wolf." Mallory said it with such finality that Sophie almost believed her. But surely, he must have come from somewhere?

"I don't know why I'm telling you this but... I suppose it doesn't matter since I'm already doomed for treason."

"Treason?"

"In a few hours, the guards will realise that Clay's prison cell is empty. They'll play back the CCTV and they'll know what happened - that I switched places with him."

"Then they'll also know that Mr Smokescreen rescued you."

"Yes double jeopardy. Siding with the enemy on both counts."

"Then you're better off here in the meantime. We'll think of something." Mallory laid her hand over her shoulder. "Now, what was it you were saying?"

Sophie wasn't sure if anywhere was safe really. Death it seemed was catching up to her quickly. Well then... if she was going to be executed, then she would at least ensure that there was one witness to her discoveries recently.

Taking in a deep breath, Sophie began.

"I believe Clay belongs to an extinct clan called the Ombre. We are forbidden to speak of it but somehow in the past weeks, I've been given access to the clan's archives and... well, I don't think their demise was anything natural."

"I don't understand."

With a long sigh, Sophie patted the tomb before them and took a seat next to Mallory.

"You see, the Ombre clan were wiped out of existence. No individual Alpha has the authority to order such an extreme execution so it had to be a unanimous vote amongst the ShadowLords - our governing council. And it started me thinking that maybe, out of the many things they tell us, most are lies.

Take this tomb for example - it's a mythical relic. It is said to not exist and yet here it is. And I think Clay and the Ombre clan's extinction is the biggest lie of all because obviously he survived."

Sophie saw Mallory sitting up; eyes focused solely on her. When she made no comment, Sophie continued.

"You see, the Mother Wolf, our ancestor, she was also of this clan! And to think that all these while we were told she has passed on, albeit naturally? That's a complete lie! And I kept wondering why our Alphas chose to kill off a wolf so sacred and important? After all, without her, we would never have come to being.

But as I dug further, I realised that the witness testimonies and execution notes were also missing from the files. They were either destroyed or not collected at all."

"Wow, you guys have such a meticulous recording system! I would have thought you'd be more -"

"Archaic?" supplied Sophie with a smile.

"I was going to say ritualistic, but yours work just as fine," replied Mallory. "Wait, so how do you know if the entire clan was executed if there were no records?"

"Word of mouth mostly -stories we were never allowed to tell in public but the ones everyone loved to talk about under the covers and in secret."

Mallory bit her lips nervously. "I don't suppose you could tell me more about this Mother Wolf?"

Figuring that she was in enough trouble as it was, Sophie decided it wouldn't hurt to just tell the human their origin story.

"The legends tell of a pack of wolves, attacked by ferocious creatures known as those who perish in the light. The Alpha, not wanting to draw another attack on her family, told her them to disperse and scatter all over the earth. Knowing that the creatures would come for her first, she sought shelter in the last place they would come looking - in a human home.

It was said that the Alpha allowed the humans to care for her like a pet; feeding and nursing her back to health until the birth of her cub. For that reason, we LightWalkers have been serving your kind for years - as your protectors, your friends, your companions -even if you were not aware of it."

"Wow. Just... wow. I mean, I've studied so many oral retellings of werewolf legends but to actually hear of one literally from the horses - or should I say wolf's mouth is incredible! Guess we're really not that different, you and I, and our natural need for stories." Mallory flashed a broad smile.

"I'm curious about one thing though; I thought Alphas were almost always male?"

Sophie pursed her lips disapprovingly. Humans were so ignorant sometimes!

"Actually you know what? I think our little history lesson here is quite similar. You mentioned the matriarchy of Lycia right? It was the same for us. The Alpha female was the centre of all life in the den - well, at least historically. A male may be granted the title of an Alpha during the period of gestation but he does not have exclusive access to the Alpha female.

"So basically she's Beyoncé."

"What?"

"Queen Bee, Beyoncé... okay never mind. So then what happened to her? Did the Risen caught up with her?"

Sophie smiled. The historian was indeed very quick.

"They did. Only to find a new source of food - the humans."

"Shit."

Nodding, Sophie continued. Here was the crucial moment were they became more than just their animal selves. She wasn't even sure if anyone outside their pack structure knew about it.

"The Alpha female had always been impressed and intrigued by the humans that she desired greatly to be like them; to walk the earth on two feet and live as they do. It was her greatest wish that her son be born into a human existence and not that of the wild -so that he may protect their kind from the Risen in ways she could never.

And so he did. You see, the child that the female Alpha carried was not sired by an ordinary wolf." Sophie looked over at the attentive historian. "In your research, have you ever come across the name Lycaon Nyctimus?"

Mallory's eyes immediately lit up. "Yes! He was one of the fifty sons by King Lycaon who were turned into wolves by Zeus."

"Indeed. His brothers, intending to trick the god, sacrificed Nyctimus and served him to Zeus. It angered the god greatly for he turned Lycaon and his sons into wolves before killing them with his lightning."

"But Nyctimus was spared; his life returned to him no? At least that was how he came to rule Arcadia upon his father's death," completed Mallory.

"Yes. Zeus gave him back his life but to remind him and the people of Arcadia of the crimes of their previous king, Nyctimus was to live only half his life as a human. The other half was that in wolf form."

"Wait a minute. Wouldn't he then be the Alpha of this Ombre clan?"