Queens Prophecy - Third place winner: LauraT_98

A Good Old Fashioned Prank Challenge - Day 5 from Werewolf Week 2022

One hundred years ago, he came for me. He stormed from beneath us and brought down the world around us. He brought destruction, tearing apart the home I knew and loved. He ruined my world, but I survived. Somehow I survived when the rest of my family was pulled down with him. Pulled into hell by the demons he worked with.

One hundred years ago, the devil came for me, promising a world far beyond anything I could have imagined. Too bad it was all a lie.

The branches of a low tree came forward and smacked me. I didn't feel anything as I continued to race between the forest trees. Weaving my human body between the trunks and branches. Jumping and leaping over roots. I kept in front of my followers, only the wolves behind me practically nipping at my heels. Ahead I see a clearing. Not stopping or slowing down, I throw my body up towards a branch, grabbing and swinging my body up into the tops of the trees.

Below me, the others have reached the clearing. They spin on their four legs, looking for me. I wait, silent, watching them like they're my prey. Waiting for the chance to take them down.

One of them shifts out of formation, and it's all I need to leap from the tree. Halfway into my fall, I shift. My body ripples for a mere second before I pounce on him, completely covered in fur. My now stronger teeth sink into his neck before I pull back and spin around to the others.

I'm outnumbered, but out of the four guys still standing, only two of them have noticed my attack. I have about half a second before they alert the others.

I lunge at the one closet. I take the wolf by surprise as my canine teeth sink deep into his skin. He yelps spinning around, but in his pain, I roll myself on top of him and bite into his neck. He lies frozen.

A claw reaches for me from above and swipes my back, a red streak of blood stains the white fur.

I flatten myself onto my last kill before reaching my claws out, grabbing the wolf as he flies through the air and slamming him onto the ground. I shift back to my human form as we fall. Holding his large wolf head and wrapping my arm around his neck until he is slumped against me.

The other two watch me, stalking me as they assess their chances. I keep my eyes on them as I push the wolf off my body.

Finally, one of them pounces towards me and, using the lithe of my human body, jumps out of the way and back towards the trees. I'm jumping through the air reaching for the branch just out of reach, when the hairy body of the wolf hits me.

My breath is knocked out of me, and with the claws of the wolf deeply embedded in my skin, I'm unable to take a breath.

We land on the ground harshly, and I use the shock to take a deep breath and shift into the wolf again.

My body changes size and throws the wolf off. I stalk him immediately, not letting him catch his bearings before I jump on him and bite cleanly into his neck.

The last wolf is still standing there watching everything I do. I change back into my human form before walking closer to him.

His hunches forward, ready.

His body morphs back into the human he is.

"That was good, Athena, but good will not protect you from him."

The wolves around us turn back into humans, each holding the part of the body I had 'killed' them with. Only Jenson is out, but his twin Taylor shocks him back awake.

"I know." I huff from all the work, but I'm the only one.

"Your main problem is focusing only on one person at a time." He continues before motioning me to take a seat in the soft grass of the meadow. I instantly sit, feeling like I would rather jump into the creek off to the side and cool down but follow the Alpha's orders.

"Anyone of us could have taken you out when you attacked someone else because you only see one target at a time. When he comes, you know he'll come with a hundred again."

I nod, grabbing a piece of grass from underneath me and ripping it apart.

"It's been a hundred years. Maybe he's over this fascination with me. Maybe he's called another his Queen." My mind is hopeful, but my voice and posture don't follow. Above me, the Alpha shakes his head.

"If that was true, you would have started aging. You've lived a hundred years but look just 25." His voice holds the sorrow I feel inside of me. If only life was that simple.

Living hundreds of years stuck at the same age might sound like a dream for most, but I watched the people I cared for die too many times. I want the peace of death, but I won't kill myself because of him.

I take a calming breath and look up at the Alpha and the others.

"Thank you for taking me in Alpha and training me like one of your own." He smiles down at me as the others come over.

"Like we could just let you go out there all alone. We made an oath to protect everyone." Jenson says before reaching a hand out to me and pulling me up. "Even those way older than us."

He winks, and I shove his shoulder.

The sun is setting behind Alpha, and something forces me to turn the other way and look at the sky, the moon is about to rise, and something about that has always dragged our wolf's eye to the sky.

It takes just a few seconds. All of us are staring when it rises the deep blood of a red moon.

A gasp escapes me, and the others gulp loudly behind me.

"The next red moon is in three months," Alec whispers to no one in particular.

I turn, fear freezing up my muscles as I look towards the others.

"Alpha..." The words instantly fall from my mind when I look behind the others and see the thick fog moving towards us.

"He's coming."

"Oh no, my Queen, I'm already here." The voice ignites behind me, and I feel the heat of his body up against my body.

As if a switch has been flicked, the sky above us turns to fire.

"This time, I'm not leaving without my prize."

A sob racks my body, and all training flies out of my mind as I stare at the wolves around me, staring wide-eyed at the devil behind me.