Valkyre POV

'Come to me, I want to mate with you'

The voice was loud in my head, something more profound, precise, and demanding.

'Come to me,' another voice rang in my mind. I pressed my hands against the sides of my head out of pain and insanity. I did not know who they were and what did they want.

And why now? Was it the creation of my mind or something real?

"Urghhhhhhhhhh," I cried out loud and looked at soldiers lifting their swords and fire torches before collecting and approaching the entrances.

"It's wolves," my father exclaimed, standing beside me. My mother inhaled a deep breath while crossing her arms over her chest.

"Again," she muttered, and I stared at them confusedly.

"Again? What do you mean? And what do they want? Why are they here? And why are these animals attacking the kingdom?" I questioned in confusion, and the growling in my head intensified.

'Come to us, we will make you our Luna. You belong here. Out and in the dark,' The message was clear, and I looked around to notice the piercing eyes of golden colours visible through the forest. There were many smells: earthy, woody, pine, rain and whatnot. It was making me uncomfortable and afraid.

"They want nothing, my child," my father said, wrapping his hand around my shoulder and inhaling deeply.

"We have to leave this place, too. They have found her," my mother said, and I gulped nervously. Nothing made sense—neither them nor my parents.

"But why? We just shifted here a few months back. Isn't our army dying and our money burning with the continuous change of the Kingdom? Sometimes abandoned, sometimes killing the King and winning, why?" My voice broke in the end, and my father collected me in a loose hug and said.

"The one with the extraordinary powers needs to make extraordinary decisions, sometimes to protect, sometimes to provide, and sometimes to survive," he looked at me.

"You know who we are," he said, and I nodded, letting a fresh trail of tears roll down my cheeks.

"We are the Gods, the ones with the supreme powers, and they want our powers," I said, recalling the essence of all the stories they had told me since childhood.

But this time, unknowingly, it all felt false. Gods do not run away from problems; they do not escape, especially from mere wolves. We could kill them, couldn't we?

"Mother! What the fuck is happening?" I heard Lucas's scream and turned behind to look at him. He was hiding behind his parents. A pinch of irritation grew in me. I hated weak men. They were of no use – just the showpiece of the dick with a crown, their masculinity lying in their fluid and their head always wearing an invisible crown.

"We need to leave," my mother said, and I followed her eyes. Despite silver swords and fire torches, the wolves managed to enter the borders. Their growls were brutal. Their eyes were looking for me. But why?

My father clutched his hand on my wrist and pulled me along. I didn't want to leave. Despite the fear, I could feel a connection with them. Why were their scents familiar, and why were their visuals appealing? Why were their growls directly from my dreams?

A dark black wolf, so tall that it would hide half of the moon when standing on the peak of the mountain. His mouth escapes the smoke, the smoke of cold, his growl deeper and scarred.

'You belong to us,' another voice rang in my mind, and I shut my eyes. My feet followed my father's lead as we stepped down the stairs. A group of soldiers accompanied us, and Lucas' family followed.

We entered the dark throne room. The gate opened with a loud crackling. The moonlight falling on the empty throne embraced with the bear's skin—a symbol of the power of Gods for us.

'You cannot escape us,' The voice in my head began to fade away, and I could not stop myself from thinking and replying. 'Who are you?'

My brows knit with confusion; I wanted to halt as the voice was getting lower. 'We are the werewolves, the child of the Moon Goddess, and you are one of us,'

I turned back as the door shut behind us. 'No, I am not,' I managed to reply, but suddenly, there was an emptiness in my mind. No more voices came, and the soldier opened the door to the secret cave that would escape us from the forest and end up near the sea.

The walk was long. Many would not have survived that attack. They bleed to provide for us, and the men bleed to save the Gods. The thought didn't sound quite well. We were supposed to fight, and I could kill them with my extraordinary powers.

But, here was I. Running away like everytime.

My stomach growled with hunger, and I stared at my father, who walked ahead of us with a fire torch and talked to Lucas' father. I could clearly hear their whispers.

"We should tie them together as soon as we board the ship to our island," Lucas' father said. I gulped nervously and looked behind to notice Lucas walking after me. His gaze was flirty. I didn't know him or what his intentions were for me.

"I think we should ask the children before," my father suggested, to which his father chuckled. "Why would they deny it? We will not have any problem with our son's wife's family staying with us in our Kingdom,"

I lowered my gaze. The price for our survival was pretty high– I was being sold to a man who couldn't even excite me. His gaze wasn't piercing; his talks were not compassionate, and his smile was not charming. He was nowhere near my dream man.

"Still, I would like to ask my daughter first," my father stated, and a slightly grateful smile appeared on my face. Ever since I was born, I had been told in my ears that they weren't my real parents, but I had always been denying it. They were my real parents, why wouldn't they be?

He was ready to risk our survival for my happiness. Maybe this was the least I could do to provide for them. After all, we were the Gods, the providers, the protectors and the survivors.

I came out of my chain of thoughts as I felt my fingers being touched by a soft hand. My gaze immediately moved to my side, and I saw Lucas trying to touch my hand.

"Hey," he muttered. "We couldn't finish our conversation," he added, and I blinked silently and nodded.

Dreams are only dreams; they are meant to be dreams, something that does not happen in reality, something that does not become true. And, the man I was looking for was a dream, too, unachievable, inexistent and a mere delusion.

My reality was right beneath my eyes. Dreams couldn't be protected in exchange for lives. The present matters more than the future. Maybe my present and future were this.

"I think once she is married, she will stop feeling all those things, too," Lucas' father said in a whisper, and I gulped, staring at Lucas.

"How old are you?" I asked, and his lips curved into a slight smile. The yellow lights of fire cast a soft glow on his face, embracing his sharp jaw, unbearded cheeks and blue eyes.

"Though age is just a number, I am eighteen," he said, and I nodded. He was a child. "And, how much do you know about marriage?" I asked in response, and he lowered his gaze. This wasn't romantic; why was he making it feel like I was trying to flirt with him?

"Um, that I can fuck someone after marriage," he said, lifting his gaze and I nodded. Another dick with a crown. "Umhmm," I hummed.

"What do you know about marriage?" he asked, and I clicked my tongue. "I think of marriage as a superpower. I will get someone on whom I can unload all my frustration, try some fencing moves, and maybe prank him by burning his chamber," I laughed in the end.

He knit his brows and laughed, too. "Hahaha, funny," he said, and I nodded.

"Valkyre," my father called me, and I looked away from Lucas to him. He joined me in the walk and took me ahead of everyone.

"I have heard everything, Father," I initiated, and he lowered his gaze.

"I am sorry, my child, I feel like a failure," he said, and I shook my head.

"You aren't a failure; you managed to save us for so many years from these wolves that you never let me know that such a thing was happening while I was asleep, laughing or enjoying. You are the best father," I said, and he kissed my forehead.

"Since you have heard everything, I leave the decision to you. Lucas seems to be a good man, and they are wealthy. I do not know about us, but they can give you the protection you need," he said, and I blinked silently.

Protection. It's such a strong word. Apart from me, they needed protection, too.

"Why are the wolves after us?" I asked in a slow voice, but he lowered his gaze for a thin moment and muttered slowly.

"They are after you, Valkyre," he said, and I stared back at him in confusion.

"Why?" I asked.

"You need not to know about it, my child. But we will do everything to keep you safe," he said, and I couldn't stop myself from interrupting.

"If they are behind me, why are you leaving the Kingdom?" I asked, and he knit his brows.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I mean, I only need to escape and protect myself; you do not have to follow me everywhere. You and the mother are getting old. Why are you taking the risks," I said, and he clenched his jaw.

"What do you mean? You are our only child. The parents are meant to protect their kids," he said. I looked away at Lucas, who was smiling at me.

"Father," I looked back at him. "You are letting thousands of people be killed only to save your child. The King is meant to save people, not use them to survive. We are Gods. What does being a God mean if we cannot protect?" I asked, and he gulped silently.

"You are not an ordinary child, Valkyre. Your life would be different if those wolves would ever catch you. And, no parent can see their child suffering,"

"Will your worry stop if I marry?" I asked, and he stared silently at me for a few moments.

"You do not have to marry if you don't want to," he said, and I shook my head. "Will they stop following me if I marry?" I asked again, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"Maybe," he said, and I gulped and lowered my gaze.

"Then, I will marry Lucas," I said, and he placed his hand on my shoulder. I didn't know anything about him, but he looked tameable. I could keep him in my control.

"Are you sure?" he asked again, and I nodded. My parents were meant to be safe, and the soldiers needed a better Kingdom. Survival was difficult, and I agreed to pay the prize.

As soon as we left the cave, I noticed the dawn.

"There is our ship," Lucas' father said, and I turned behind to see his mother panting hard.

"We didn't come here to see this," she yelled at us, and I looked away, ignoring her. She could be the problem.

We walked through the empty grassland, followed by the sandy beach, to reach the wooden ship. Lucas' mother was the first one to climb over it. I helped my mother before I stepped forward. Lucas was scared, too, as he had initiated the trip before his father and me.

"You can go first," his father said with a strange smile, and I nodded. As I stepped again, I could feel his eyes on my back. It made me slightly uncomfortable as I could sense everything deeper and wilder. This was a boon, and sometimes it was a bane.

I felt him following behind.

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