Ten Years Ago

~~~~~~~

"Happy birthday, Gwen."

Gwendolyn Bowen smiled happily and blew out the candles on her cake. She leaned back, hands held together as if in prayer, and sighed blissfully.

It was her eighteenth birthday, a day she had been waiting for. The moon in the sky was a full round disc, sending its silvery rays through the windows, a proof of the moon goddess's blessings.

Beside her were her parents, Alpha Thane and Luna Naomi, rulers of the Earth Realm Pack.

The birthday party was supposed to be a huge one, seeing as the princess of the pack just came of age.

But Gwendolyn just wanted a little celebration with her parents, the only people who mattered to her.

"Did you make a wish?" Naomi asked eagerly.

"I did." Gwendolyn answered with a soft smile. "And enough with the birthday cakes. I'm not a little girl anymore."

Her father, Alpha Thane, chuckled happily.

"When you turned ten, you made your mother and I promise to get you a cake for every birthday." He said. "You wanted us to make it a tradition."

"Maybe I did say that, but not anymore." Gwendolyn laughed. "I'm too old for birthday cakes and lit candles. I just want to find my mate."

Thane and Naomi exchanged a look and smiled. It felt strange hearing their little girl talk about finding her mate. It seemed like yesterday when she celebrated her first birthday. Now she was all grown up.

"I got you something special." Naomi lifted a decorated gift box from the floor and handed it to Gwendolyn.

Gwendolyn happily ripped the box open and brought out a book bound in thick leather. Her eyes lit up when she saw the title.

«Legend Of The Demon Prince, Anubis»

"You didn't." She gasped.

Naomi laughed as Gwendolyn flew into her arms in a tight embrace.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you." She gushed happily. She pulled back and stared at the book unbelievably, eagerly flipping through the pages.

Ever since she turned sixteen, she had pestered both her parents for a copy of that book. It was her favourite story, a story that had been told for many generations.

"I know how bad you wanted it." Naomi smiled, softly tucking a lock of dark hair behind her ear.

"Thank you so much, mother." Gwendolyn hugged the book to her chest tightly. "I will cherish it forever."

"You're welcome, sweetheart."

Then Alpha Thane cleared his throat and pulled out a slim velvet box from his robe.

"Happy birthday, my princess." He winked and placed the box in her hands.

Gwendolyn opened the box, and a bronze dagger met her gaze. She took it out and unsheathed it. The blade gleamed sharply under the light of the chandeliers.

"Your very first weapon." Alpha Thane continued. "It has been passed down from our generation. Now it's yours. I know how much you want to be a warrior princess. This is the first step."

Gwendolyn sheathed the weapon and threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you, father." She smiled. "This means a lot to me."

She spent a little more time with her parents in the living room, laughing at their silly jokes. But most times, she sat back and admired how sweet and loving they were to each other.

Despite having been mated for twenty years, their love blossomed each day. Every look shared between them, every touch, every glance and caress, it was proof of how much they loved each other.

She wanted that kind of love someday. A love so deep and intense. An all consuming love. And she hoped to find it with her mate soon.

An hour later, she returned to her room. Her parents had retired for the night.

She stood silently as the maids bathed her and helped her into her night gown. After they left, she curled in her bed with her book and flipped the first page.

A picture of the Demon Prince met her eyes.

Anubis.

Even as a mere drawing, she felt the power and darkness from his gaze. His wings, enormous black feathers rising from his back, were spread open behind him, like an angel of death.

She flipped to the next page and began to read. Soon her eyes turned heavy and she fell into a deep sleep.

...

She awakened suddenly to terrified screams.

She jerked upright in bed, her ears ringing loudly. The thick smell of smoke wafted into her room, choking her.

She coughed and jumped out of the bed, almost tripping on the bedsheets. Suddenly the door burst open and Orion, her father's beta, rushed in.

"Forgive me, Princess." He bowed hastily. "But we must leave at once."

"What's happening?" Gwendolyn asked as he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the room. A second later, the roof of the bedroom caved in and flames poured in, setting everything ablaze.

"We're under attack. I must get you to safety." Orion yelled as he raced through the passages, taking several turns until he reached a secret tunnel.

"Under attack? From who?" Gwendolyn asked frantically.

"The Wildings." Orion said the dreaded words.

Gwendolyn froze when she heard him. The demon creatures which she read in books were actually real?

She didn't have time to think much on it because a part of the castle suddenly collapsed. Flames followed, burning down everything in its path.

"I don't have time to explain." Orion rushed on. "Take the tunnels. It will lead you to the safe wall outside. A dozen lycan guards are waiting for you. They will take you somewhere safe."

"But my parents." Gwendolyn said in panic. "Where are my parents?"

"Doing their best to fight against the Wildings." Orion answered. His entire face was covered in soot and bloody cuts which were slowly healing. "It is a losing battle. But the earth realm will not fall. Not today."

"Let me help."

"No!" Orion shook his head. He grabbed her arms and thrust her into the tunnel. "I swore to your father that I will take you somewhere safe. Please, Princess, go. Save yourself."

"But..."

"Go!" Orion yelled just as the remaining part of the ceiling crashed. He pushed her into the tunnel and jumped back just in time before the burning ceiling could collapse on him.

Gwendolyn couldn't see through the raging flames. The heat was intense, almost melting the skin off her bones.

With no other choice, she turned and raced down the tunnel. But halfway there, she paused.

The book and the dagger, gifts from her parents. She couldn't leave it behind.

She turned and raced back to the castle. When she reached the mouth of the tunnel, she was shocked at the scene before her.

Everything was burned to the ground. The air was thick with the smell of smoke, making it difficult to breathe.

She picked her way through the flames around her, heading back to her bedroom.

The room was almost gone when she got there. The bed was covered in flames, the dresser, the couches. Everything was ablaze.

Coughing heavily, she moved to the vanity where she kept the gift box. It was already covered in flames.

She stomped on it, putting out the fire in time. Then she grabbed the book and the dagger, turned around and fled.

But she didn't return to the tunnel. Instead, she raced towards the front doors of the castle to find her parents.

She burst through and froze on the spot, horrifed at the scene before her.

Bodies. Dead bodies, burned to ashes. Her people, lycans of earth realm pack, massacred brutally.

She looked up and spotted the demon creatures flying about in the sky. There were about a dozen of them. The moon had turned to the colour of blood.

They looked eerie, eyes glowing blood red, wings flapping heavily, breathing fire from their mouths as they burned down everything on their path.

Then she heard her mother's scream.

Adrenaline flooded through her body as she raced towards the sound.

But halfway there, she fell to her knees.

Right before her was her father's body. Alpha Thane Bowen, beloved Alpha of the Earth Realm Pack.

His head had been ripped off, and his body set ablaze.

Gwendolyn looked up just in time to see one of the Wildings, larger than the others, dragging her mother away.

She remained on her knees, frozen in horror, unable to do a thing.

Suddenly the creature stopped and turned around. He looked straight at her and their eyes met, brown eyes clashing with blood red eyes.

She took note of his face, etching it into her memory.

To her surprise, he grinned, his fangs gleaming under the glow of the blood moon, then he turned away. His massive wings burst out and he flew into the sky, followed by the other creatures, taking Naomi away with them.

The last thing Gwendolyn heard were the screams of her mother.