He stops and looks down. I glance up at Jayce, wondering what Alpha Aaron’s feeling. He wipes at his eyes before smiling wistfully. “I wish I could have had the strength to continue this position, and although I wanted to simply say I am not cut out for it, I have tried to show you all that we must never give up. It might look like I am, but my health is deteriorating, and there are things that no magic or power can fix. Sometimes life must go on.”
My heart squeezes. He was a good Headmaster…
“But in my stead, I leave someone who has defied all, someone who I know can see this to the end.” A whisper spreads through the room. “She has survived the loss of her mate and her sons, yet she remains strong. I present to you the new Head Commander of Midnight War Academy! Give it up for Luna Maria Rossi!”
I gasp as Jayce lets out a small hmph, a small smile on his face, as everyone claps. I watch as Jaddati walks onto the dais, she’s wearing a high-neck and long-sleeve black top, a wide belt and black wide-leg pants. Around her head, she has her hijab wrapped in a turban style.
My Jaddati…
I can’t help but cry as I clap loudly. My Jaddatiisdamn brave. She’s perfect for this position. Jayce places an arm around me as the crowd silences.
“Thank you, Alpha Aaron,” Jaddati says with a small smile as she looks across at the students.
“You are welcome. It’s all yours.” Headmaster Aaron motions to the dais, and I smile, watching her proudly as she steps forward.
“Change is always hard, but rest assured, I will do my best to continue the legacy of this Academy. I will make sure each of my students – no, warriors, becomes the best version of themselves,” Jaddati begins. “Let’s do our best and prove to the enemy that we are the winners.”
A ripple of approval flits through the room.
“I will be around the school, and anyone who wishes to talk to me is welcome. My office will also be open to anyone who has any concerns. I don’t want to keep you from your classes for long, but does anyone have any questions they’d like to ask that can’t wait?”
A few hands shoot up, and Jaddati motions to one of the students.
“Your mate died. They say it’s hard to survive without one. Are you sure you’ll be able to handle this?”
Annoyance flits through me, but Jaddati is calm, simply giving a small smile. “You will learn that the strength of the Rossi women knows no end. Our husbands were martyrs. They died in battle, fighting for what’s right. We couldn’t be prouder. Their deaths are not our weakness, but our strength. For them, we hold our heads high and keep going until the day comes when we meet again.”
The silence after her words steals my breath, and then the boy who had spoken is the first to clap, and everyone follows.
I smile up at Jaddati, pride swelling my chest.
She is a warrior queen, and I want to be just like her.
The air is thick with the smell of scorched sand. It clings to my nostrils, tickling it. Heat simmers across the dunes, warping the horizon in waves that make my vision distort. The weight of the sun presses down; it’s so low.
I’m in that dream again…
The silence is loud, broken only by the wisps of hot air that sift through the top layer of sand. I look down. I’m in a cloak, but I’m barefoot, and the heat from the sand scalds me.
I sense footsteps behind me, and I turn to see the cloaked man approaching me.
“Today is the day you became a woman, daughter of three gods.”
“Daughter of three gods?” I echo in confusion.
He tilts his head slightly, his hood casting his face in deep shadow. “Yes. Are you not a tribrid?”
“I am,” I murmur, my pulse quickening. “Wolf, demon… and witch.”
He nods, a slow curl of satisfaction pulling at the corners of his mouth, his face still half-hidden by his cloak.
“Exactly, and each one pulls you towards a different fate. Selene, who wishes to preserve the world for her children and those yet to come. Hecate, who will change as quickly as the illusions she commands, and Kek, the God of Demons, who watches from the shadows, seeking to tear down the barrier between worlds.”
“Kek…” I look at him.
“I knew him as Erebus, but like us all, we have more than one name, and he prefers Kek,” the man says.
He just confirmed we were right; our theory was that the God of Demons would be either Erebus or Kek, and Leo assumed that just like other gods, it could be the same deity. He is right.
