Lunar Shadows: Awaken

Selene

My consciousness is aware that I am not asleep, yet I can’t access any of my senses. The feeling is really disconcerting, and I would for sure start panicking if my mind wasn’t still enshrouded with the sedative spell. With no touch, sight, sound, smell how the hell could someone not panic? Is this what a coma feels like? I wonder, my thoughts echoing around me into nothingness as a blurry dim light appears in the distance. Latching on to the one thing I can see, my mind focuses on it intently and I’m suddenly surrounded by a hazy silver light with misty white wisps floating by lazily.

A bright white flash darts by through the haze and Luna appears before me, her icy gaze aglow from within. If I had breath it’d be stolen from my lungs at the sight of her, she is magnificent. Though she doesn’t stand as tall as Valdr, her presence definitely demands just as much, if not more, respect and attention than he does. She has an aura about her that feels powerful and her eyes pierce right through to my soul.

Took you long enough, her crystal voice sings around us and her eyes squint a little, as if she’s smiling.

Luna! I cry, my consciousness pushing toward her and with our connection I can feel my body manifest, wrapping my arms around her fluffy neck. I hold onto her for a few heartbeats until she dissipates into mist beneath my arms and my hands flail out to catch me at the last moment. I push to my feet, spinning around in the foggy nothingness in search of her to no avail. “Luna! Luna, where are you?” my voice echoes around everything and nothing.

“Selene?” I hear Asteria’s voice call back to me in the distance.

“Ria, over here! Follow my voice. I’m not going to move until you find me because this is weird as hell and I don’t want to get lost forever inside my own mind, not when I haven’t even finished sorting it out myself and I have so many things I still need to do, I can’t get stuck here in this freaky ass smoke. What the hell even is this? Is this my brain? No wonder I fucking lost my shit—”

A hand grabs my arm, cutting off my wild rambling and Asteria appears, pulling me in tightly for a hug. I hold her back just as tightly for a beat before leaning back to take a deep breath. At her touch, the misty haze slides away slowly, pulling back around the giant trees of the forest Kyran and I had been in and I realize we’re standing in my imagined manifestation of my memory. I recall him making a comment about this being a beautiful way to see my long term memory and I step over to the closest tree, placing my palm against the bark. It glows brightly at my touch and the tree becomes a translucent video of some sort, playing a memory of mine from when Asteria started a food fight in mother’s kitchen when we were little, she was throwing crumbled cupcakes at me and I was flinging spoonfuls of icing over the island back at her. I smile widely at the memory and remove my hand, wanting to check out this forest and the vast variety of trees it holds. I assume that each type of tree is categorized with specific sets of memories and my mind itches to explore.

Just as I take a step away, Ria takes hold of my elbow and pulls her gaze from the forest to meet mine. “Where is that memory chest you were telling me about?” she asks, brushing her knuckles against the food fight memory tree.

In the distance, I can hear the crash of ocean waves and the trees sway with the winds they create, making me grimace. I really don’t want to go back in there if I don’t have to, so I close my eyes and focus on that island Kyran and I had found. Imagining the little beach with the jungle and private waterfall pool, I pour my energy into the image and wrap my hand around Ria’s wrist. In a heartbeat I feel the ground soften beneath my feet and I open my eyes, finding us on the small white beach overlooking a stormy, turbulent sea.

“Whoa,” Ria whispers, looking out at the dark frothy waves.

“Yeah,” I sigh, watching it with her, “that forest was my long term memories, and Kyran guessed correctly that this is my unresolved trauma and negative energies,” I gesture at the roiling waters with a frown. “We got caught in it unexpectedly when we were here. It was awful,” I say quietly.

The ocean isn’t quite as violent as it was the first time, but it is far from a calm, tranquil lake, that’s for sure. The waves don’t tower as highly, though they still are ominous and intimidating so I turn my back on them, taking a couple of slow, measured breaths. After a few moments, the loud crashing noises lessen some and I reach behind me to take Ria’s hand in mine as I step forward toward the jungle.

She pulls herself around with me, following me silently along the path until we reach the sparkling pool with the gleaming metal chest. Asteria pulls me back to face her with a pained look on her face. She wraps her arms around me tightly, rocking us back and forth a couple times before she lets go. I give her a ‘what can you do?’ look and turn back toward the chest. Stepping over to it, I notice how nothing has changed since I last saw it.

Ria steps up beside me and opens her mouth to say something but before any words form, a heavy sensation drops through my mind, as if I’d been swimming for a while and finally placed my weight on solid ground. I blink a couple times and shake my head lightly, pressing a hand to my temple as I glance at Ria, wondering if she felt it too, when I realize the sedation spell must have been lifted off of me. Anxiety crawls over my skin, sending little prickly spiders skittering in every direction as I am momentarily overcome with a sense of dread at being trapped in my tumultuous subconscious mind. Asteria must notice a look on my face or sense the change in me because she grabs my hand firmly, looking me in the eyes. “Selene, I won’t let anything happen to you, I promise. This is our goal here,” she points a manicured finger at the chest, “not that,” she waves at the whooshing of the ocean behind me.

I nod my head, controlling my trepidation and breathing it out slowly. “Okay, just do it. I don’t want to be in here any longer than necessary,” I shake out my hands and turn to face the chest once more.

Asteria gives me a long look, then nods her head once in agreement and lets my hand go as she fully faces the chest. She had told me how this spell requires precision and a lot of energy to execute properly while we were waiting for our mother to return from preparing for the stasis. I take a step away from her to give her some space and look around the clearing, trying to distract myself from the crashing waves on the other side of the jungle forest.

Ria places her palms against the chest and begins lowly chanting a spell, her fingers splayed wide and pressing firmly against the metal as she imbues her magic. She pulls her hands away and straightens, her brow furrowing in confusion when nothing happens. I watch as she repeats the process, again getting the same results. Ria presses her fingers to her mouth, staring at the chest with narrowed eyes, concentrating on her thoughts when I hear leaves rustling nearby.

Glancing behind Ria, I find some of the large ferns swaying back and forth rhythmically, the movement catching my attention as she chants again louder this time, more forcefully projecting her voice and slamming her hands against the chest. It’s at this moment that I watch as dark water laps over the jungle floor, creeping closer and closer toward us with every ebb and flow, the whooshing sound of the ocean growing louder and louder with it.

“Um, Ria…” I murmur, anxiety making my voice thin as my gaze remains fixed on the rising waters.

“Hold on, Selene, I can’t understand why the spell isn’t working. I’m reciting it just as she told me to, exact incantations and everything,” she mumbles, stepping around the chest to look at it from another side.

I swallow thickly, raising my hand to point at the encroaching ocean, now spilling into the calm pool at the base of the waterfall as the jungle plants are swallowed by its murky depths. “Asteria, I don’t think we have any time left,” my tone of voice must finally catch her attention as she glances at me worriedly and follows my line of sight.

“Shit! Shit shit shit!” she yells, whirling around and slashes a hand in an arc, shouting, “auferet!”

The water pulls back a small distance for a moment before surging forward, small waves crashing over my feet and sending me careening forward. I let out a yelp of surprise and reach out toward Asteria, our hands just missing each other as I hit the ground and tumble into the cold frothy sea water. My hands scramble blindly for purchase and I grasp onto something solid and smooth, realizing I’ve got a hold on the edge of the metal chest. It radiates silver light at my touch and Asteria’s stricken face glows in the reflection, her eyes widening with realization.

“You have to touch the chest while I’m doing the incantation!” she yells over the deafening sound of waves crashing eerily close.

I open my mouth to agree when a large wave pummels me, filling my throat with icy water and tearing me away from the chest. My body flips end over end until it slams into the trunk of a palm tree and pain radiates along my spine at the contact. Fuck, she was right to tell me it would feel like reality, I mentally groan, trying not to lose control and freak the fuck out.

I focus on what Kyran had taught me, how I should treat this place like a dream and envision what I want into existence. With that in mind, I tell myself I can breathe and I try, wincing against the iciness in my chest and am relieved to only feel air instead. Opening my eyes, I am surrounded by inky blackness and can’t tell which way is the surface so I visualize Ria and the chest with a pocket of air surrounding her, keeping her safe from the water. Hoping it works, I push off the tree with my feet and swim in the direction I’m completely guessing is where Asteria hopefully remains with the chest.

A flash of green whizzes past me, followed quickly by two more, and I trail after them when I notice they are vines being pulled up and out of the water. My head breaks the surface to find Asteria wielding the vines like whips, lashing them toward the rising water and breaking its surface with her magic. Hand over hand I swim as fast as I can toward her, snagging the end of one vine and giving it a light pull to get her attention.

“Shit, Selene! Are you okay? Hold on tight!” she yells, tossing the other vine into the water and making a yanking motion with her hand.

I’m forcefully dragged toward her, the vine efficiently towing me quickly through the thrashing water and her cold hands latch onto my shoulders, hauling me onto the grass beside her feet. I scramble on my hands and knees to get away from the frigid sea, beyond grateful that my envisionment actually worked. Turning to look back at Ria, I watch as she motions her arms in great sweeping patterns, her body swaying rhythmically as she chants a spell and I notice the water surrounding us swirling into a hollow ring at her command.

“Asteria! I’m going to try to freeze the water so you can do your spell! It’s the only chance we have!” I cry out over the din of the violent ocean waves that have swallowed up the little island entirely, leaving only this tiny patch of land with us and the chest left to destroy.

The ring she created has crested into a sphere with us trapped inside the dome, shadowy figures taunt me from the other side of the water and I tear my gaze away to look into Ria’s bright eyes. Her brow pinches in concern but she nods anyway, understanding we don’t have another choice. I look up at the racing waters in the sphere and envision a thick wall of ice. My mind pulls any association I have with cold, solidity, walls, anything that can help me barricade us from the ocean of agony that seeks to devour me. I imagine forming a glass bubble, projecting all my previous thoughts into it as hard as I can and the rushing noise ceases around us.

The frozen dome that surrounds us is rippled and glistens with the light emitting from me like millions of diamonds crushed to dust and sprinkled into my skin. Asteria gapes at the ice wall and drops her hands to her sides before snapping her gaze at the chest and rushing toward it. I reach out and slap my palms against the cold metal at the same time she does when an ominous crack sounds above us, a fissure fracturing the ice and sending shards raining down over us. The jagged pieces cut harshly into my cheeks and arms and I hiss against the pain as another resounding snap sends larger pieces flying.

“Asteria!” I scream in fear and she squeezes her eyes shut against the sight.

She yells the incantation one last time, a vein in her neck straining with the effort as the glowing chest begins to vibrate. A tear streams down her cheek and more chunks of ice come crashing around us, water starting to pour over me in icy rivulets. At the last word of the spell, the chest explodes open, knocking us both onto our asses as glittering silver light pours endlessly from the burst top. The swirling beam fountains up and outward, the misty streams intertwined with inky black shadows billowing throughout the light as it coalesces into one thick ribbon dancing on the wind.

I gasp at the sight as it rushes me, crashing into my chest and everything ignites in blinding white light around me. My body is electrified, every cell swelling with immense power as my mind flows over with images, sounds, places, people, beings, tastes, smells— with everything. Memories fly by me like the blurred window of a car on a highway, too fast to identify any one thing, but enough of an idea to know what I’m looking at. I can’t breathe as it feels like my mind and body is being separated into thousands of pieces to be sanded, polished and put back together again. Euphoric laughter erupts from me as the last of the powerful light absorbs into my body and I find that I am floating high above the dark sea now.

My joy is immediately snuffed out when I realize the little island and Asteria are nowhere in sight as I whirl around frantically, only finding the vast waters stretching into the distance. A sharp whistle catches my attention and I snap my gaze up to find Ria floating on her back above me with her hands cradled behind her head as she leisurely kicks her feet over a cloud. She grins widely at me and I laugh carelessly in my immediate relief, throwing my arms out wide and spinning in circles in the stars that manifest around us.

I catch her hands as I swing past her and take her along with me in my flight of glee, finally, finally back to my whole self again. My gaze meets her bright lavender eyes and I picture the cage Luna has been trapped in, pushing my energy toward it and soft grass tickles the bottom of my feet a breath later. Ria’s squeal of happiness pierces my ears a second later as she strangles me half to death in her excitement and I can’t help but just laugh and hold on tightly.

“Holy fuck, that was intense!” she laughs once, gripping my shoulders and giving me a slight shake. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if the spell didn’t work, but damn that was a rush!” she grins toothily and lets me go.

“Yeah, well, I’m really glad it did. I feel amazing,” I breathe, the wide smile never leaving my face.

A chuff catches our attention and we turn to see Luna standing at the edge of her golden cage, one ear flattening while a paw stamps the ground in annoyance. Ria snorts before breaking out into a giggle fit and I join her, our adrenaline making us a bit giddy and I press my palm against the lock of Luna’s cage. A flash of light stretches out in a band around the bars and the cage disintegrates, leaving only my wolf and the iridescent golden bond behind.

Luna dramatically shakes out her coat and saunters over to me haughtily, making me laugh once more as I throw my arms around her neck and cry into her soft fur. So much time has passed with us separated and now that I finally understand what it is like to have her as a part of me, I never want us to be separated again. A gentle rumble rolls from her chest comfortingly and I know she feels the same way, prissy attitude be damned and I laugh through my tears at myself as I sense her inner eye roll. I take a few moments to collect myself before I release her, rising to my feet to wipe my cheeks dry.

“Hey, Luna, it’s good to see you,” Ria smiles warmly and rubs her fluffy head.

Mmm, she hums as a reply and primly sits on the grass.

I grin widely at my wolf, feeling free and whole as I shout an excited cheer to nothing, the sound similar to a yelp of joy. Her eyes narrow before she throws her head back and howls, making Asteria laugh joyously and dance in a circle. After a miniature celebration, Ria talks with Luna about nonsensical things and I happily let them catch up, knowing we have all the time in the world for us to talk.

Now that I have my memories back, I have full understanding of the position and power Luna and I hold. Not only are we the most powerful werewolf to exist, we are the fucking queen, and dear, sweet Caedes is about to suffer my wrath. He has caused unforgivable amounts of turmoil and death within my race, and I fully intend to make Caedes beg me for his life before his long-overdue death falls upon him at my hands.

With the knowledge of how the stasis magic works, the runes on our skin are powered by our own magic with the aid of the moonlight and Hekate is mostly there just in case something goes wrong or to adjust things accordingly. The three of us take our time in conversation and relaxing, conjuring ridiculous things to laugh about and enjoy while being in this astral plane. I think about my relationship with Hekate and how for the past fifteen years with her—though technically it was over a century and a half—she was solely in the role of my mother and nothing else. My newest memories in life contradict what I now know to be the real truth, how Asteria’s implanting a false past in my mind made me think I had been adopted as a teenager and alter how my time was perceived to pass by for only a few years rather than more than a hundred to accommodate for my supernatural growth. I understand fully where they found difficulty and I do not hold any grudge against them for it, knowing why I had agreed to be placed into stasis to save the werewolf race from potentially being wiped out. What perplexes me now is if I continue to call her mother, or like I always used to simply address her by her name.

Though she had a part in my creation, technically the moon goddess Selene and the great wolf Fenrir are my…parents? Ugh, no, I shake my head at the thought and let it go, deciding I’ll bring it up to her once we are back in the earth realm. Sighing, I sit up from my place in the grass, looking out over the cliff at the churning ocean water. The waves aren’t undulating highly anymore, the water the image of any normal sea. The size of it, though, is what concerns me. Rising to my feet, I step over to the ledge and raise my arms out before me.

Wind blows my hair around me wildly as it picks up with my intentions, the vast ocean water begins to swirl into a funnel and I conjure a large glass bottle between my outstretched hands. Mentally envisioning the sea water streaming into the bottle, a long ribbon of the icy dark liquid raises from the center of the whirlpool and guides itself to me. The ocean shrinks rapidly as the water flows into the glass until there isn’t a drop left below. Squinting my eyes at the trapped torrent of water, I place a wooden pirate ship inside with a realistic thunderstorm added and cork the bottle closed.

Turning around, I heft the bottle with a grin and Asteria laughs with her eyebrows raised, commenting on the ingenuity of my mind. I smile at the bottle, the once all-consuming power of it becoming something I can pick up off the shelf and interact with if I choose, or to just watch from a distance if that’s all I can do. The harsh experiences my ‘human’ life gave me have become comparably minor when faced with the hundreds of years I’ve lived previously. This does not negate the impact it had on me, however, the bottle of tempestuous water I hold in my hands is proof of that and I will have to break it open at some point to release it from me for good. At least for now it is easily manageable and that is all I could ask for.

I push the bottle up into the air and watch it float toward the forest of giant trees and turn to face Asteria and Luna. “Ready to get back? There’s a lot to be done,” I say with a smirk, reaching out to take my sister’s hand and rest my other on Luna’s head.

“I am if you are,” Ria responds with a grin and I nod my agreement.

She lifts her free hand to swirl it through the air around us, whispering, “Tempus est ut evigilet” and my body tingles all over before my vision fades to black.

I flutter open my eyes as cool air fills my lungs and I sit up groggily, rubbing my face. Asteria stretches her arms over her head as she sits up beside me, looking as disheveled as I feel and I grin at her, giving her a quick hug before getting to my feet. The crystal circle surrounding us has gone dormant, returning back to its original state and my eyes seek out Hekate. She is standing a short distance away, her arms clasped behind her back as she stares up at the full moon high overhead. Her head turns toward us as we step over the circle and Ria begins to collect the crystals.

“Selene, how did it go? How do you feel? Are you alright, were you harmed?” her hands flutter in the air around me as her words rush from her and I laugh, pulling her in for a hug.

“Hekate, I’m fine. I’m really well, actually. It wasn’t easy, but we were successful,” I pull back and give her a wide smile which she returns in earnest.

“That is wonderful news!” she quickly hugs me before pushing my shoulders back, her thin eyebrows pinched in concern. “What of Luna? Is she finally here with us again?”

Yes, mom, I’m home, Luna’s light voice chimes sarcastically with a humorous tone and we all laugh out loud from it.

Hekate’s eyes are crinkled with happiness as she says aloud, “Luna, old friend, I am overjoyed for you to finally awaken. Let us replenish our energies and then we must see you run free,” as she looks deeply into my eyes.

I would like nothing more than to oblige, however there is something Selene must do first before I will shift, Luna declares, her tone quieting.

Hekate and Ria both glance at me and my smile falters as apprehension tightens my chest and I slowly nod my head, knowing what Luna means. “Yes, she’s right, though I am starving right now. If we’re done here, let’s have dinner together first before I must go,” I look between the two of them as they nod carefully. “Great, see you there!” I chirp before drawing on my long unused power and give them a wink as I shroud myself in darkness, shadow-walking home.