The Moonstone Wolf

CHAPTER 2- Let The Games Begin

TRISTAN

     “Keep stomping away, little wolf” I thought to myself as I watched her flick me off.  Gods, I love how she riled me up and swung her hips when she was angry, which is pretty much all the time, so I enjoy quite a bit of hip action.  I can only imagine what those hips would do underneath me, making me twitch with curiosity.

   “Soon, very, very soon you’re going to be only mine,” I said under my breath, fully enjoying this feeling of lust towards her.

   Alora Prince was easily the most beautiful woman I had ever set my eyes on.  I wasn't exactly a world traveler so I didn't have a whole lot to compare her to, but I had been to different towns to get supplies and sell the goods we produced.  Everything about her just drove me crazy.  

   She had black hair dark as a moonless night that hung down to her waist in soft curls, and emerald green eyes shone like the gems they resembled.  If you looked closely you could see some blue flakes in there, making them so unique.  Her perfectly arched eyebrows set them off even further and her high cheekbones were dusted a beautiful shade of pink most days.  And oh gods her lips... I imagined myself devouring them like a starving man who hadn’t eaten for weeks, making them even more plump and a darker shade of pink from our kiss.  

   While her body was thinner than I’d liked (it’s not like we’re living in the lap of luxury here and had all the food we could want), she still had delectable curves.  She was muscular from her hunting, but I wanted to see just how sexier she would look with some added weight and rounder curves.  And when she had my pups, I couldn’t wait to see her round belly and bigger breasts.  

   I felt myself stiffen at the image of her I had in my mind, and I had to calm myself for the time being.  I couldn’t afford any distractions tonight, and as I headed to my own cabin with my closest men in tow, I smiled evilly at how well my plan was coming together.

   Justin used to be a great leader for whatever you would call our little group.  A former Alpha that was stripped of his title, runaway wolves were just drawn to him- my father was one of them.  Since the chance of survival is better as a group, we just kind of stayed together to hunt and protect each other.  We were living mostly in our wolf forms until he and my dad found this little abandoned camp that humans had built quite a few years ago.  Right now it’s falling apart and I don’t know how much longer we can stay for, but I had something in mind.  Justin refused to see it and said I was too ambitious and dangerous for our good, but I can imagine our group’s potential to become a powerful, menacing force to the surrounding packs here.  If we can overtake them and grow our forces, then we can take what we want and not have to worry about our houses crashing down around us. 

   My father, who was one of the most ruthless wolves that I knew of, taught me how to navigate through the ranks and gain the upper hand very, very well.  So well, in fact, that I had no problem killing him off so that I could assume his position here.  

   Since then it’s all just been a chess match of strategically placing myself and other “friends” in key positions so that it all but guarantees me succession when Justin’s time is up.  And that happens to be tomorrow.         

   “How tragic that we'll have another hunting accident,” I breathed out in satisfaction, going over the plan in my mind, and that's where Alora comes in.  She will be instrumental in the pack's growth, as I licked my lips in anticipation when I thought of the price anyone would pay to have her.  Hell, the price I would pay to take her, growing excited at the mere thought of her bare, pale skin against mine.

  “Be patient Tristan, all of this is almost yours.  Just a couple more days to go and then she’ll be ready for the taking,” I sternly reminded myself out loud as I went into my cabin.  

   The reputation of the beautiful Prince women were quite well known in the area, even with Esmane’s mental concerns and Alora’s attitude.  I can only imagine what Alora’s mother looked like in her youth when Justin found her lost and hurt in our forest.

   I think that’s why he took pity on her and said she could stay and he’d protect her, but I think it’s more along the lines of he wanted her too.  Even when she got better and healed, a piece of her soul was still broken and she retreated completely into herself and wanted nothing to do with anyone for awhile.  And that’s when Justin decided to have her move in with him- to keep an eye on her and probably more.            

   Unfortunately, by that time he found out she was pregnant with Alora and he just couldn’t bring himself to be with her out of fear of hurting her pup.  After she was born he tried to have a relationship with her, but it didn’t last and she never was with anyone else after that.  Justin didn’t want Alora to suffer, so he decided that until she was 18, she was strictly off limits to anyone and everyone upon penalty of death, and he asked me to enforce it. 

   I will have her soon, though.  So until then, I’ll continue the charade of being her “friend”.  I’ll gain her trust just enough to let me get her alone, ask her to be my Luna, then mark and mate her to be mine to do what I want with.

   'I hope she doesn’t make it easy; I want a challenge,' I grinned, and placed both hands on my hips, anticipating what I’ve planned for tomorrow.  I have a feeling she won’t make it easy- she never makes anything easy between us.  I can feel my eyes darken as my wolf tries to take control.  

   'We will not be satisfied with anyone else and you know it- remember our agreement,' my wolf sneered. 

   'Oh, I remember,' I answered back.  ‘And I’ll come through on my end.’

     I excitedly rubbed my hands together in anticipation and climbed into my comfortable bed to rest up for tomorrow's adventures.  “Ah... let the games begin.”

**Next Day**

   We left out before light to go in search of whatever prey we could find- hopefully an elk or two, some deer, or anything big that would feed the seventy-five wolves back home.  We picked up the scent of some of the usual animals, and Justin gave the signal to pursue them in different groups.  He was such a predictable idiot! It always left us vulnerable when we broke off, but this is the exact reason why my plan will work perfectly.

   Justin’s wolf picked up the scent of a particularly nasty rogue- one that we had encountered before and we almost killed him, but Justin had mercy on him and let him go.  That had pissed me off at the moment, but right now I’m not so upset that he lived as he may prove to be useful.  He motioned to me to circle around to the left and Adam, one of my guys, to circle to the right.  His plan was to wedge him in.

   I have ridiculous hearing and can pick up the slightest sound from miles away. I immediately discounted all the ambient sounds of the forest and those of the group, and focus on anything else out of the ordinary.  That’s when I heard it.

   This rogue appeared to be not too smart because I could clearly hear him muttering to himself incoherently.  It seemed like he’d been on his own for quite a long time and he still wasn’t healed from the last time we met, which meant this was going to be easy pickings.

   I circled in front of him and crouched, ready to pounce.  But then I smelled Justin come into the area so I had to adjust my plan.  

   The rogue seemed to be alerted to him as well, so I just kept crouched and waited for everything to go down.  Justin walked out into the path to the left of the rogue and glanced around looking for me and Adam but we didn't move.  Justin seemed confident that he could take him, so we let him.  

   Needless to say, that was a disappointment.  It lasted literally three minutes and it was over, but Justin was huffing and puffing like he had just ran a marathon while he fought a gladiator.  I shook my head as I walked out, not understanding how he could have survived this whole time.  

   He looked at me as we both shifted to our human form.  “What the hell are you doing Tristan?” he growled, probably feeling like something was off and not liking the situation, but I didn't care.  Let him sweat for a bit.  I just continued to circle him, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.  He's absolutely no match for me or my wolf, and hadn’t been for a long, long time.

    “What do you mean Justin?  You had to know this was coming...”.  I waved my hands, signaling that the guys could step out into the open.  One by one, all my warriors came forward in their wolf forms with ears back, teeth bared, growling lowly and deeply at their former leader, encircling him.  And by the look on his face, he knew what was coming.

   My wolf, who was now fully shifted and in control, closed our eyes and began to concentrate on what he wanted.  He chanted some shit I have no idea what it meant, but when we opened our eyes and looked up at Justin, he suddenly began to choke and levitated few feet off the ground.

   His feet began to kick in desperation as his face turned red and purple, and we decided we had had enough.  We cocked our head to the right sharply, and everyone heard a loud crack.  Justin's body became lifeless and dropped into a heap on the ground, all the guys scared shitless. 

   Exactly the effect I wanted.

   After a long, uncomfortable silence, Adam, my right-hand guy, spoke as I shifted back to my human form.  

   “Tristan, I think I speak for everyone here when I ask… What the hell was that?!”

   I just sighed, dusted off my hands, and smiled widely at them.  

   “You really don’t want to know.  But, if you obey me unquestioningly, submit to my authority, and just be good warriors, you’ll never have to experience that.  You don't do those things, and, well, you'll end up like Justin.  Any questions?”

   When no one spoke, I asked Adam and a couple others to grab Justin’s body and that of the dead rogue while we headed back to our camp.

   “What about hunting for food?”, someone asked.  I looked back over my shoulder with a smile and said “Oh, I think I can make something happen.” And laughed.