Goddess Rising

by Alisha Ashton

  Skye closed her eyes and reached out for the man inside. Miko’s human consciousness was adrift and sleeping within the beast’s mind, but she was able to locate it with relative ease. She showed the wolf pup images of the brave, kind, and funny man he was, and introduced them wordlessly. She took her time helping the pup to understand that the man and wolf were the same being – not enemies vying for control of their body. That while the man was at the helm, so to speak, the wolf could rest safely inside.

  The process was far more in-depth than she anticipated. Hours slipped by unnoticed, but she gradually felt the pup begin to understand. With great care and at a painstakingly slow pace, Skye began to wake Miko’s consciousness. The change was instantly visible. The beast jumped up onto its feet and – unfamiliar with the strength and bulk of its body – promptly crashed into the bars of the cage. Breathing heavily, it looked around itself in confusion, then down at Skye seeking an explanation.

  Skye grinned triumphantly. “Welcome back, Miko,” she greeted.

  “Miko?” Aiyana called softly. She was shocked when the beast turned and grunted in response to its name.

  “What in the…?” Drostan asked in disbelief.

  The ancients all approached the cage in wonder.

  “What the devil have ya done?” Eògan asked with a surprised laugh.

  “I helped,” Skye answered plainly. “There’s still a lot more work to do, but… yeah. That is all Miko in those eyes. He’s in control.”

  Miko was looking down at his transformed body curiously, sniffing the air and taking stock of all the newness that came with being in his faol form.

  “D’ya think…? Will he be able to control the change?” Taran asked with cautious hope, floored by the possible implications for their clan. If Skye truly could help all of their pups control their transformations, their army’s numbers would swell exponentially. There were currently many tens of thousands of pups in their clan who had yet to complete their Nasgadh.

  “It’s possible. It will probably take me a little while to work out how to do it. I might be able to help him change back and forth now, but the real test will be if – after I help him through one – he can fend off the change at the rise of the moon on his own.”

  “Can you do this for all of these other guys, too?” Aiyana asked, motioning to all of the cages.

  Skye looked around the room longingly. “Eventually, yes. I won’t be able to help them tonight… Or even before we fly out. It’s not draining for me or anything, but it is time consuming. It took – what? A couple of hours just to help Miko? And that was someone I know. It will take a lot longer with the pups I am not as close to.”

  “Whit aboot Elijah?” Ailean asked hopefully. “Yer claise. Kin ye dae this fur him tae stairt?”

  In response to Skye’s curious look, Eògan explained, “The whelp has been chomping at the bit ever since he heard ya were headed back to Faol Seunta without him. And, of course, Ailean here’s reluctant to leave his youngest pup behind. If ya are able to help Elijah as ya have Miko, and if they both prove themselves able to resist the transformation at the coming of tomorrow night’s moon, perhaps they could make the trip with ya?”

  Taran smiled at the possibility. “Tha would add another aspect to the visit. I’m sure Faolan will be very eager to meet Miko.”

  Wait, what?! Miko demanded in disbelief.

  Skye threw her head back and laughed at the unexpected thundering of his voice in her head. Apparently, he was over his initial surprise and was learning how to function in his new form.

  Why would the Maker of all Makers – the mother fucking OG werewolf / wolfwere – want to meet ME? Miko demanded as his faol form paced the cage’s interior anxiously.

  “He’s talking through our link. Wants to know why Faolan would want to meet him,” she relayed.

  “Think about it, inky. Skye is your faol Mummy,” Ciaran teased. “Did ya nah realize tha makes ya Faolan’s grand-puppy?”

  Holy fucking…! Miko cried before having an anxiety attack.

  12: Swallowed

  After a couple of hours working with Elijah, she managed to link the man and wolf together as a cohesive unit. She was not able to communicate with him telepathically the way she could with Miko, but that was fine. He could understand their spoken words without issue. He understood what was happening and was positively thrilled.

  As Elijah was more familiar with his transformations, Skye worked with him first on trying to trigger the change back to human at will. It took a few tries, but with her guidance, he was able to shift back to human form several hours before sunrise. Ailean was positively giddy over it – bursting with pride over his pup’s achievement. To Skye’s surprise, the ancient lifted her up off of her feet in a celebratory hug. She always forgot about his proclivity for hoisting her up into the air. It never failed to catch her off guard.

  “Yeah, he’s a hugger. You get used to it eventually,” Eli laughed once he finished getting dressed and exited his cage.

  Skye pointedly ignored Ciaran’s attempts to tell her through their link aalllllll about the other physical activities Ailean was known for. She cleared her throat and smoothed out her clothes once she was back on her feet.

  “Okay, Miko. What do you think? Do you want to give changing back a try? Or would you rather wait for the sun to rise and it to happen naturally?” Skye asked, wanting to give him a choice in the matter.

  Ugh. Is staying like this an option? That shit was zero fun. I’m not in any rush for an encore, Miko griped.

  “I could go buy you a collar and leash if you want, but someone’s liable to shoot you when I take you for a walk,” Skye teased.

  All right, all right… but bring a blanket or something in with you, k? I don’t want to ‘rock out with my cock out’ in front of a live studio audience when I shift back, he said in a huff.

  “Oh, really now? You want to be shy? Because I seem to recall, one of the times when I changed back, you –” Skye began in amusement until he cut her off.

  Ba ba ba ba… No need to rehash the mistakes of the past, right? Skye? Riggghhhttt? he whimpered pleadingly as he squeezed his muzzle through the bars. His eyes went to Taran and Aiyana, then back to Skye, not wanting the topic of his past antics broached.

  Skye rolled her eyes. “Okay, fine,” she sighed before snagging a blanket and his pile of clothes. Drostan opened the cage door and she ducked inside.

  How should I sit? Should I sit? Miko asked anxiously, moving back and forth from sitting to standing as he rambled. I don’t want us to be in some hella weird position together when I change back, ya know? You sitting on the floor, me standing in front of you, my naked junk all up in your face? He shook his head at the idea. See, that’d just be no good for anyone because Tar would probably castrate me right then and there and… Hey, wait. It’d sorta be creepy now, too, right? With the whole ‘faol Mommy’ thing? That’s like… werewolf incest or some shit. Or bestiality… Bestial-incest? He tilted his head to the side. Animal abuse, maybe?

  “You have got to shut up!” Skye declared, holding back laughter. “Just sit down on your ass with your front paws on the floor holding up your weight. You’ll be on all fours when you change back. And here,” she said as she tossed the blanket over him. “Your modesty will be preserved. Happy?”

  Huh? Oh, yeah. Sorry. I was still contemplating just what category of wrong it would classify as if we ever bumped uglies… he answered.

  “I swear, my very next order of business will be finding the permanent off switch for your link. I can’t have your rambling, crazy ass thoughts downloading into my head with no filter,” Skye declared.

  Miko’s eventual transformation back to human was considerably less painful, but that was usually how it went. Skye had always figured it was because it was more painful to break and stretch things than it was to shrink them back to the proper size and shape. Going through both changes in the span of a few hours, however, often left a pup feeling as if they had been
run over by an eighteen-wheeler. Repeatedly. When it was all said and done, Miko was positively exhausted. Everything from his head to his toes hurt, but he made it through the process with an hour to spare before sunrise.

  “How do you feel?” Skye asked worriedly as she crouched beside him.

  “Oooowwww,” Miko answered pitifully from beneath his blanket. “There is no way in hell I am moving to get dressed. Fuck clothes, that’s what I say. Blanket-chic is my new style.”

  “Hey, if he’s nah gonna have to be dressed from now on, I vote none of us have to wear clothes,” Ciaran called.

  “We would ne’er allow ya to go ‘round bare-arsed, Ciaran,” Eògan assured. “Clothes are the only thing tha slow ya down a tic so’s the rest of us can clear the area before ya jump Skye.”

  Skye snorted at that, then smiled sympathetically down at Miko’s huddled, entirely-covered form. She lifted the blanket enough to see his face. “I know it hurts like hell. How are you doing with the moon still out? Any urge to change back?”

  Miko’s eyes snapped open wide in horror. “Oh. My. GOD. If I even look like I might start to change back again, you fucking shoot me. I’m not even playing with you. Double tap right to the dome. Put me down.” He tried to crane his neck to find Aiyana, but quickly abandoned the excruciating effort and gracelessly face-planted back onto the floor. “Ya-ya? Where you at, girl? You’ll shoot me, right?” he called hopefully.

  “Gladly!” Aiyana laughed from beyond the bars. “Everyone heard that, right? I get to shoot him. No take-backs.”

  “I’d literally pay ya to take tha shot in your stead,” Drostan joked. “I still recall healing up from his trigger-happiness.”

  Skye patted Miko’s cheek lightly and ran her fingers over the side of his now-tattoo-less scalp. “Ciaran’s gonna have to come up with a new nickname for you,” she joked. “Can’t be ‘inky’ with no ink.”

  Miko laughed and nodded, then winced at the movement. “I look forward to seeing my new, blank skin… in like 4 hours and after I eat a whole keg of fucking pain killers. Seriously, ouch. What’s a guy gotta do for some anesthetic around here?” he whined.

  The following day was a rush of preparations. Despite his wishes to come along, Eògan would be staying behind to run the pack in the absence of the King and Queen. He originally requested that they reconsider this decision. He quickly piped down when Skye told him – point blank, in front of dozens of members of the pack – that he was the only one she trusted to keep their pups in line while the rest of the ancients were away.

  Eògan looked around at several of the pups and elders that would be in his care. He tried not to look too smug in response to her public vote of confidence. “Happy to play the part of den mother in your absence, my Queen,” he declared.

  Skye knew without a doubt the pups were going to be kept on absolute lockdown in his care.

  Skye, Taran, Ciaran, Drostan, Ailean, Ruarachan, and Aodh were set to fly out around midnight. The departure time gave them the opportunity to see whether Miko and Elijah would be able to come along. A large detail of other ancients and elders would be traveling with them. The men had been carefully selected by Taran from their own pack, as well as packs in the surrounding states. Every one of them was a warrior by their very nature – those who had proven their mettle in Taran’s eyes. Only the fiercest faoil would be entrusted with the task of protecting their Queen as she journeyed to Faol Seunta.

  By noon, Elijah had already demonstrated that he was able to trigger his transformations at will during the day (much to Ailean’s sheer delight.) Miko, on the other hand, was nowhere near as experienced with the process and had no desire to try yet. He was far more enthused by the possibility of NOT having to transform again when the sun set. Taran assured him that he was doing incredibly well so far and that there was no rush.

  By late afternoon, bags were being packed and placed by the door in an ever-growing pile. Among them, Taran noted a few surprising additions. He walked along the pile, finding familiar green canvas duffle bags and several military grade weapons cases. He frowned in disapproval as he crossed his arms over his chest and waited. A moment later, just as he suspected, Aiyana rounded the corner with yet another case in her arms.

  Seeing Taran standing there, she deflated slightly and gave a sheepish smile. “King Taran,” she greeted respectfully.

  Taran said nothing. He simply narrowed his eyes on her.

  “Is there something wrong?” she asked in feigned innocence.

  “I do nah recall saying ya were invited along for this particular excursion,” he noted pointedly as she approached.

  Aiyana sighed as she shuffled along with the case that weighed more than half her body weight. “Skye is in danger. And at this rate, Miko is probably tagging along with you all despite all of this being new to him, which means he might need a tranq dart at some point. The way I see it, those two items ought to land me on the invitation list as a given,” she answered with a hopeful smile. Her eyes widened when Taran hoisted the bulky case out of her arms with a ridiculous level of ease.

  Taran gazed down at her appraisingly. Despite her pleasant smile, he recognized all-too-well that fiery, determined look in her eyes. She was very nearly as headstrong and stubborn as his Queen. Spirits save me from the willful women of this age, he thought.

  After a moment, his jaw flexed, and he sighed in defeat. If he denied Aiyana this, she would undoubtedly find a way to trail along after them against his wishes. In that scenario, she would place herself within danger’s sight, yet beyond the clan’s ability to defend her from harm.

  “Ailean? Aodh? Drostan?” Taran called and waited for his brothers to look over in response. “It would seem Lady Aiyana is coming with us. While we travel, see to it tha she is protected. At all times.”

  As the ancients bowed their heads that it would be done, Aiyana frowned up at Taran. She opened her mouth to debate the necessity of such precautions, but quickly closed it when Taran gave her a determined look of his own.

  “Oh, ya will cooperate with them,” Taran declared. “Or I will have ya sedated and shipped right back here in a pup cage of your own.”

  Aiyana’s mouth formed a tight line. She paled considerably. She strongly suspected that he was not joking.

  “I am nah joking,” Taran confirmed. “If ya insist on coming along, ya will follow my command. I’ll nah have ya putting yourself or any member of our clan in danger. No matter how formidable ya fancy yourself to be. No matter how… admittedly capable ya have proven yourself in battle…” he added with great reluctance.

  Aiyana grinned at the praise.

  He rolled his eyes. Great – it was Miko all over again.

  “Ya are still mortal,” Taran reminded firmly, “and tha makes ya the most likely target in our group. D’ya understand, lass? Ya are a dear friend to many of us, but ya must appreciate the unique, grave risk tha friendship presents to your safety. Ya must take even greater care now than ever before. Our enemies will seek any opportunity to get their hands on ya. To come at Skye through ya. I know ya are aware of her past, so ya know full well what it would do to her to lose ya – especially if ya were harmed because of the bond ya share. I know ya care for her. So, please, act accordingly. Heed our advice. Allow us to protect ya as we do our own kind. Keep yourself safe, and in so doing, make Skye and the rest of our clan safer.”

  Aiyana blinked back tears at the weight of his words and the utter sincerity behind them. “I understand, King Taran,” she said quietly. “I swear I will be careful. For her sake. For the clan’s sake.”

  Taran thanked her for the assurance and went on about his tasks. With Ruarachan following behind him like a shadow, Taran walked out into the drive to look over the truck that would be used for Skye’s transport. Once satisfied that it was ready to go, he went to the guard post to make sure everyone had their orders for how to proceed in their absence. He went over a few items with his clansmen before a voice in the distance caught his attention
. The usual members of the press were all posted outside the gate, but amongst them today was a new, unfamiliar face.

  “Hey you! Big guy!” the dark-skinned man called in the subtly rasped voice of a middle-aged smoker.

  Ruarachan let out a quiet growl of disapproval and put himself between Taran and the stranger. Taran’s brows drew together suspiciously as he focused on the man.

  “Yeah, you! Tell me, buddy – what do you make of all the clouds in the… Skye… today?” The man nodded upon his discrete use of her name.

  Taran’s body went rigid. You suddenly could have heard a pin drop in the courtyard. All faoil within earshot were instantly on high alert as they watched the scene unfold. Each one was stone-still, standing at the ready to spring into action.

  Taran struggled to mask his barely contained rage. He slowly exited the guard post with three faoil in tow. Ruarachan was right at his side, keeping pace to stay between Taran and the new arrival.

  Taran studied the man appraisingly with a deadly glint in his eyes. His posture made it clear that he was prepared for an attack. “I do nah know, stranger…” he called back in a dangerous tone before asking purposefully, “Are we in for stormy weather?”

  The stranger shook his head. “If so, I sure as shit didn’t bring it with me,” he assured with an easy smile.

  Taran scowled. The faoil in the surrounding area all continued watching the stranger at their gates warily. The man was attempting to say that he was not there to start trouble, but Taran was ever suspicious by nature when it came to the safety of his loved ones. His eyes slowly wandered up to the runes at the top of the gate.

  Time to give this warding spell a test run… he thought and motioned to the faol at the gate to let the man through. If the stranger was up to anything, Skye’s magic would make it inescapably clear. Very much to Taran’s surprise, however, the man passed right through without issue. He even paused to politely thank the faol who had brought him in.