The Dying Fate (The Umbra Chronicles Book 1)

by Willow Ravenheart

  I look down my body, noticing all the tiny wrinkles in my shirt and the small freckles along the skin of my arms. That's when I notice, the flesh that was once shredded along my palms are completely healed. The only sign that I had hurt myself is the dried blood caked along my hands. What the fuck?

  "Elliot!" I scream, holding my hands in front of my face. How the hell is this possible? This SHOULDN'T be possible.

  Elliot, as well as the other three men, run into my room. Their eyes grow wide as they stare at me. My hands are shaking, but I can't look away from them.

  "Macy," Elliot whispers in a hushed tone, "what's going on?"

  "My hand healed!" I announce, turning my palms out to face the men surrounding me.

  "That happens, Sunshine...." Elliot says with a light chuckle. He reaches out and takes my hand into his, small shocks trickling up my arms. His fingers run over my palms and it doesn't even ache. It's like I never hurt myself.

  "What happens?" I question him. It takes me a moment to notice, but the tingles are only getting stronger the longer he touches me. This was not happening before....

  "You heal from wounds like this rather quickly," he says, his fingers crawling further up to caress my wrist, "it happens when your Umbra awakens within you. Do you feel her?"

  "Not right now," I admit, "but, she was here a moment ago. When she left...everything was...more."

  "That's because she's with you now, Macy...." Hank says from the door way. I glance up to him, only to notice the worried look that consumes his face. As I look around the room, I realize that all of them have the same look.

  "What's going on?" I ask, my pulse quickening within my chest.

  "Macy," Elliot sighs worriedly, sliding his hands down to interlink his fingers with my own, "you just hit two stages at once...."

  "What?" I scoff, pulling my hands from his.

  "Look in tha mirror...." Sebastian mutters.

  I whip around to glance at my reflection. A scream catches in my throat and I run to the mirror. My eyes...they're a vibrant, glowing yellow!

  "How is that possible?" I shriek, spinning around to face Elliot. Sebastian and Hank look to each other, concern etched into their features. I glance at Denny who looks just as confused as me.

  "We don't know," Elliot sighs as he reaches out to pull me into a hug, "but we will find out. I'm going to call Robert to come look you over...."

  "What can he say now that he didn't know before? Do you remember what Alpha Ronan said? I'm going to fucking die! " I growl before pulling away from him to stomp through the doorway.

  "I don't know!" he yells from behind me, the sound of his footsteps echoing throughout the hall as he follows me.

  "Then why call him?" I snap, spinning on my heels to face off with Elliot. He backpedals a few steps to keep from running into me.

  "Because, we have to do something to help you!" He exclaims as he tosses his hands into the air. He grasps his hair at the roots, yanking on the long strands before dropping his fists to his side.

  "Tell me whether I'm going to die or not. Which one is it Elliot? Because I'm tired of being in the dark about everything. You know more than you're telling me...."I pull away from Elliot and walk to the kitchen.

  My hands grip the counter top as I lean against the structure for support. It feels as though my legs are going to fall out from underneath me. I draw in a shaky breath, trying to gain some sense of composure.

  "Macy," he sighs, his hands sliding around my sides to pull me back into his hard chest, "I don't have those answers. There's only so much I can do and reading your future isn't one of those things."

  I turn his arms and lean my head back so I can look into his face. There's a look written on his features that I can't place. I let my hands slide up his chest, savoring the tiny pinprick tingles that prickle along my palms. They settle on his shoulders and I lean back against the counter.

  "Why can you calm me down so easily?" I ask him as I press my forehead into his chest.

  "It's just part of being an Alpha...." he says as he runs his hands up and down my arms, "There's something about my...abilities that make it easier for me to manipulate the emotions of other Shifters."

  "Well, that doesn't sound fair." I joke.

  "It's useful actually. If two Shifters are in the middle of a fight, I can make them stop. Or, like I did for you before...if someone is having issues controlling their own emotions, I can help center them. It's all part of being a natural leader," he tells me as he runs his fingers through my hair.

  "Why does it feel like you have an electrical current running through you when you touch me?" I ask, having been curious about it since meeting him.

  "I'm not exactly sure," he says, "but maybe it has something to do with me being an Alpha. I'm still not used to all of this...."

  "Why not?" I ask.

  "I haven't always been part of a pack and I've only recently began to learn about my Alpha perks...." he says with a shrug. That's weird, since he seems to know everything.

  "Why?" I ask, trying to urge him into telling me more. I'm interested to know more about him. I mean, I am living with the guy for Christ's sake.

  "Pass...." He mumbles. Looks like he has some secrets, but I'm not one to be pushy.

  "Can I be allowed to take a walk?" I ask, deciding to change the discussion, "By myself? I just have so many things to think about and all I want is a little time to myself. I promise, I won't die while I'm out there...."

  "Go," he sighs, pulling his hands away from me, "there's nothing more that I can do to stop you. I'll call Ronan while you're out and maybe we can figure out something."

  "Thank you," I whisper before leaning forward to wrap my arms around his wide torso.

  He stiffens beneath my touch before gently wrapping his arms around my shoulders. I take a moment to breathe in his scent, a strong mixture of earth and evergreen trees. Being this close to him makes me feel as though I'm in the middle of an overgrown forest.

  "Don't make me regret this...." He mumbles before letting me go.

  I pull away and run to my room. It's a warm evening, so I slip on a teal tank top and a pair of running shorts. I stoop down, trading out my flats for a pair of sneakers before walking out the room.

  Denny meets me when I leave my room and pulls me in for a hug. I feel him put something in my pocket and look up to him questioningly.

  "It's your phone," he tells me, "if you need anything...call me."

  "Okay, Denny," I sigh, "thank you."

  I pull away from him and walk down the hall to the kitchen. I grab a bottle of water from the refrigerator before walking out the front door. Sebastian's sitting on one of the raw wood rocking chairs and stands when I walk past him.

  "Would ya like some company?" he asks.

  "No, but thanks for the offer!" I call to him before hopping down the steps two at a time.

  The warm breeze catches my hair, twirling the dark ringlets around my face. I take the hair tie around my wrist and pull my hair up into a ponytail with ease. God, it's awesome to have my arm back, even if it's just for little reasons like this.

  If it wasn't for the huge possibility of this 'infection' killing me, I would probably think this was the best thing that ever happened to me. I mean, I have my arm back, I see the world in a way I never did before and I'm surrounded by a horde of people who live to keep me safe. I will be honest and say that all the perks are awesome, but the chances of me dying are not....

  Why are the stages hitting me so fast? I mean, no one has heard of someone like me. You would think that was great, but it isn't. You can’t treat something that you don't know how to. Why can't I be a normal Shifter? If that makes any sense since there's nothing normal at all about my situation.

  I look up and see a thick wooded area to my left, just along the shore of the lake. There's a small trail cut between the densest parts of the forest and I head toward it. The rich scent of wildlife and underbrush traveling to my nose from the breeze. My mouth s
alivates at the smell of what I can only assume is the scent of a rabbit running further into the undergrowth. What the hell's up with that?

  I shrug off the weird hunger and continue my hike into the woods. The shrill of a bird breaks the calming silence and I snap my head up to see a bluebird perched on a branch far above my head. It calls down to me while anxiously hopping around on its pine branch perch.

  "I come in peace...." I chuckle as my feet carry me further into the forest.

  It's amazing, the feeling of being alone for the first time in I don't even know how long. It seems like I've only been alone for a few minutes at a time since the accident. It's been a little over five months since that fateful day, but it feels like it's been generations.

  That reminds me, my birthday is coming up in a few weeks...as well as Henry's.... It's also the first birthday in nearly nine years that I've spent away from home and Henry. It's weird, knowing that I've gone this long without the love of my life and that I'm still able to function properly. I wouldn't, in a million years, have thought it was possible.

  I shake my head before my thoughts go dark and pay attention to where I'm going. I can see a clearing in the trees ahead of me and pick up my pace. The moment I break from the trees, a gasp escapes my lips.

  There's a large, natural rock formation in the middle of a clearing about two acres wide. The ground is littered with low-lying bushes and fallen leaves from the surrounding forest. The rock juts from the ground at a slight angle and plateaus at the top, forming a nice flat area.

  My feet carry me to the rock and I clamber onto it, my hands and feet sliding against its slick, moss covered surface. By the time I reach the top, I'm nearly out of breath. I sit along the edge, my feet dangling. The view from up here is breathtaking and I lay back against the warm stone, letting the sunlight hit my face.

  I don't know how long I lay there, but I do know that I've now been alone the longest since the accident. It's relieving to know that I don't have someone breathing down my neck or asking me if I'm alright ever five minutes. Maybe, once all of this is over, I can ask to be put in a house, far away from my long-haired guardian. Why do I need a guardian anyways? It's not like I can really do anything....

  Footsteps approaching the clearing break me from my thoughts and I sit up with a huff.

  "I'm fine!" I call out, "You didn't have to track me down. I'll be back in a little while."

  Silence surrounds me and I'm consumed by the same feeling of unease I had the night of my attack.

  "Hello?" I call out as I launch to my feet, looking out along the clearing, but I don't see anyone.

  I look around one last time before sitting back down. It must have been an animal or something. Maybe I'm just being too paranoid. Everything has been really weird lately and all of these heightened senses don't help since I don't know what look for.

  I lay back against the rock again, but another rustle in the underbrush causes me to shoot to my feet. I spin to look behind me and a scream catches in my throat. Three, feral looking wolves stare at me, their hackles raised as they lift their lips to snarl at me.

  ‘Get to safety, NOW!' Kana screams in my head, causing me to palm my temples in pain.

  I open my eyes; small tears spilling from my eyes and look around for an escape route. The three wolves are approaching me, low growls vibrating in their throats. I look down from my perch and contemplate jumping, but I'm not even sure I would survive the fall.

  'JUMP!' she snarls, and I do as she says. I step off the stone and swallow a scream as I free fall to the unyielding ground beneath me. My feet hit the ground with a loud thump and I cry out in pain from the impact. But, I know I need to get moving if I'm going to escape the wolves.

  I take a deep breath and begin running for my life. My feet scramble along the undergrowth as I flee from the snarls following me. My lungs burn with every breath, but I know that I can't stop. If I stop...I die. It's as simple as that.

  'Stay on the trail!' Kana tells me as I enter the dense forest, 'They will be able to overtake you in the forest, so stay on the trail and run like hell!'

  I take her advice and stay on the path I used earlier. I can hear the pounding of paws behind me and their barks and growls echo throughout the forest. God, why did I come out here by myself. I grab for my pockets, spitting out a line of breathless curses when I realize that I've dropped my phone.

  I push through the pain in my lungs and legs, trying my best to stay alive. I know I only have a few hundred more yards before I'll make it out of the forest. I have to make it there, because the others will be able to hear my calls for help.

  Pain lances up my leg as my ankle twists in a patch of mud and I scream as I try to run despite the agony running up and down the limb. One hundred yards, that's it. I can see the clearing at the end of the trail, but it feels as though it's miles away. My footsteps falter and I nearly fall on my side. The sounds of my assailant's snarls are the only thing that keeps me going.

  'Keep going, Macy!' Kana cries in my mind, coaching me through the pain, 'You can do this. Just a hundred more feet!'

  I nod my head and take one last breath before biting through the pain and pushing my body to a point that I didn't know existed. My feet fly as I cross over a fallen log before finally breaking free from the confines of the forest.

  "ELLIOT!" I scream, glancing back to see the wolves gaining on me.

  A loud boom startles me and I look forward, to the house to see Elliot running out of the front door, which lays across the porch in splinters. He jumps off the porch and the moment he hits the ground the transformation begins. I nearly fall as I stare at him wide eyed.

  He yanks his shirt over his head and a loud roar escapes his lips. I notice a fine layer of hair appear across the scars covering his chest before the sickening sound of bones popping reverberates throughout the clearing. A moment later, he drops onto all fours as something mixed between man and wolf. His face elongates into a snout, the hair grows along his body, and the bones in his arms and legs pop into place.

  Within the blink of an eye, he finishes transforming into his wolf. He's a blur of midnight black fur as he flies along the ground, to my side. A cry tears from my lips as I fall and I curl up, covering my head with my hands. I feel his legs brush against my skin he stands over me protectively, a snarl escaping his lips. I twist my head to look at the wolves surrounding us and whimper at the feral snarls and growls flowing from their lips.

  The sound of footsteps running toward us makes me snap my head and I see Hank and Sebastian both jumping off the porch. Hank wastes no time in transforming into a massive, sliver wolf. His transition is much quicker than Elliot's, it must be something that comes with age. Sebastian on the other hand, falters as he runs to us, a look of terror on his face. He looks as though he's about to turn tail, but he shakes his head and runs toward us. My eyes widen as he shifts before me within the blink of an eye. He's a fucking badger!

  'Macy, run for the house. We do not need to be in the middle of this,' Kana whispers to me, her voice a faint presence in my mind.

  I take a deep breath before scrambling from beneath Elliot and run as fast as I can to the house. Snarls and growls echo from behind me and I turn around to see my three friends launch themselves at the wolves. A scream escapes me when I feel hands on me and I look up to see a panicked Denny hauling me toward the house.

  Louis runs past us, a determined look on her face as she launches herself off the front porch. Within the blink of an eye she shifts into a huge, muscular mountain lion. A feral yowl flows from her lips as she barrels into the fight alongside her pack members.

  "What the fuck happened?" Denny asks as he pulls me through the front door and to his room, which faces the forest. He quickly locks the door and pulls a chair and wedges it beneath the door handle.

  "I-I was in t-the woods...." I stutter, taking in great, deep breaths in an attempt to stay conscious, "T-they came out of n-n-nowhere!"

  "It's okay, the guys wil
l take care of them," he whispers before wrapping his arms around my trembling shoulders. I sag against him and let out a broken sob. I could have died out there. After everything I've been through, the accident and the attack, it could have been the end for me.

  "Calm down," Denny coos into my hair. His hands move and he lifts me into his arms. "It's going to be fine."

  "Take me to the window," I whimper, "I want to see."

  Denny carries me to the window and I move the curtain aside. I can easily see all of the action from here. Elliot's black fur and Hank's silver coat are easy to spot as they gang up against a single wolf, the biggest one of the bunch. The feral wolf snaps at them as he spins in circles to keep them from attacking him. I see a lone wolf, several yards from the fight. He's on his side and I can see a splash of red against his tawny coat. Louis stands over him, her tan coat covered with blood as her tail lashes back and forth, her gaze trained on the badger before her.

  Sebastian faces off with the second remaining wolf and a cry flies from my lips when the wolf tackles him to the ground. He scrambles against the wolf and I can see his long claws tearing at the wolf's underbelly. The wolf is now trying to get away, but Sebastian latches onto his neck and gives it a feral shake. Holy shit, I didn't know badgers could fight like that!

  As the wolf falls to the ground, it distracts the wolf facing against Hank and Elliot. They take the opening and tackle the wolf to the ground. I look away as Elliot takes the wolf's neck into his mouth and shakes it with all his strength, blood splattering in every direction.

  It feels as though I'm going to vomit and I lurch from Denny’s grasp to run to the closest bathroom. Denny helps me pull the chair aside and I barely make it into the bathroom in time. I have to lean against the sink before I vomit into the porcelain. I lean my head against the cold counter-top and my legs give out from beneath me.