Before they left, Rem looked herself over in the mirror.
She’d be a full-blooded shifter after this.
She could even be like her gran, establishing a legend after her name.
Luna or not, Rem had proven that she would not break. She had proven her resilience, and this was just the beginning for her.
* * *
The Silvers begantheir walk around midday, their destination hours away. Josie, of course, asked if they could use horses, but Imari told them that walking would exhaust the Silvers, which would clear their minds and make it easier for them to give in to the moon.
It took a while, but Rem enjoyed it. The walk was through beautiful forests, and she could take her time and be alone with her thoughts.
To her surprise, the other Silvers did the same thing, all walking quietly and as if they were lost in their own world. Only one, a sheepish girl named Emma, was nervously chatty. Her Alpha was of a smaller pack in the alliance, one that Rem heard before as Mountain Fang.
The debacle in Marcus’s home proved useful, in one aspect—they all understood the importance of getting their own claws, especially once the injured Silver told them her story of the male who wanted her.
The group walked until the night had fallen, human servants pacing them with torches for the Silvers to see better.
Soon, I will walk through these woods without needing fire to guide my way.
Rem dared to even think she was excited. She looked forward to so many aspects of being a shifter. How she was going bring this up to her family back home escaped her, but she figured that was also something neither here nor there.
The deep forests opened up to a field that was surrounded by mountains, the full moon so bright that a dark shadow accompanied each one of them. The site before Rem pricked the hairs on her arm: in the distance was a large, dark mound, and in front was a statue of a female… The entire sculpture caught the light of the moon, rippling through in ways that Rem had never seen before. It even glowed.
Next to her, Loral said, “The Moonstone Sculpture…”
“The what now?”
“Their goddess Æris. That’s the goddess of the moon. It’s carved out of polished moonstone,” Loral said, nearly whispering as she lowered her head in the sculpture’s direction. “My Alpha has been excited to see it.”
Tall pine trees surrounded the clearing, a small body of water reflecting the moonlight behind the statue.
There was a singular tree near the sculpted woman, and its trunk was all twisted like a god picked it up and spun it around, placing the tree back into the dirt. The branches stretched out with lanky limbs.
Ronan, Marcus, and Allard stood beneath the tree, waiting, while the other Alphas stood behind the tree.
Rem’s heart ignited at seeing Ronan, knowing what his kisses tasted like and what his weight felt like over her. Rem tried her best to exude confidence and certainty, wanting to impress that Alpha.
Imari faced them before they approached the Alphas. Her pale blonde hair was pulled back in nearly similar fashion as the Silvers, her wrists covered in more bracelets today. “The day is finally here, Silvers. That is a statue of our goddess, and her energy can be felt on nights such as this, when the moon is fullest. It should help ensure the easiest transition for you. The idea is to turn you in lands that are steeped in magic, as we admit… This is happening rather quickly. But the magic should offset any challenges, and at least equip us with strength, should we need it.”
None of the Silvers responded.
Imari turned around, pleased with their expressions, and the Silvers began to near the Alphas once more.
Rem wasn’t sure if she should make eye contact with Ronan or remain focused on Imari. She hadn’t faced him since he was last on top of her. Her curiosity won as she stole a glance, his gaze already narrowed and focused on Rem.
Rem smiled to herself, looking back ahead as the Silvers were guided onto their knees in a circle around the statue.
Once their knees and shins were on the cool grass surrounding the marvelous statue, Imari stood next to it, the moonlight shining behind her as the moonstone reflected onto the Elder.
“There are two ways to transform,” Imari began. “A shifter can bite you on a full moon, or you can drink a serum of ours. We will use the serum today, as the bite is never guaranteed. Once you drink your serum, an Elder will come by to complete the process. Then, you will spend some time, up to a few hours, incoherent, as your body beckons the moon and her power changes you.”
Rem’s heart raced, especially when she saw a shadowy figure move from inside the mound—which she now recognized as the entrance to a mine, like one from back home.Is that a crystal mine?
Out of it emerged Tania—the Arch Elder—and thirteen other Elders who were painted head to toe in white paint, their hair in the same style as the Silvers, carrying bowls full of a liquid that caught the moonlight much like the statue of Æris.
It was an awe-inspiring moment, if Rem were to be honest. It even felt holy.
