THE AWAKENING

Iona’s old bones creaked and rattled beneath her thin skin and she wished she could still transform. She missed the feel of the ground beneath her paws, the feel of arterial blood gushing into her mouth as she took down prey.

Ah, those were the days.

Now she was stuck in this old woman’s decaying body, her mind still as sharp as ever, but her ability to do anything more than shuffle and limp was lessening by the hour.

She’d known the minute she saw Cassandra, she’d be The One. Relief and sadness followed the knowledge but when one has lived as long as she, the relief was a bit more pronounced than the sadness.

And now the time was here; albeit a bit more quickly than she’d anticipated. Thankfully, she’d already paid her homage to the Mother Goddess for all the years she’d given her and she was ready to pass the torch.

Cassandra was dying.

She pushed aside the wall of men standing helplessly around Cassandra’s inert body, shocking everyone with her sudden appearance. “Seer!” Tieran exclaimed. “Serra—“

“Has poisoned Cassandra with wolfsbane,” she cut in irritably. “Yes, yes, go make yourself useful and get me my bag as well as a sharp knife.”

“A knife?” Tieran repeated but Iona’s no-nonsense stare quelled his questions and he left quickly.

To Jandin, she said, “You must keep Tieran from this room. I must be allowed to complete the ritual in order to save her life. Do you hear me?”

Jandin nodded fearfully. No one would gainsay the Seer. “Yes. Can you save her?”

world rests on her survival, I damn well better try,” Iona said, surprising Jandin when she cackled a short laugh before

this but you’ve handled yourself well. I know you will shoulder this next responsibility with as much grace as you’ve shown thus far.”

she withdrew

Goddess,” she murmured as she poured a drop into Cassandra’s slack mouth, then another, and another, until the vial was nearly

Cassandra’s stomach, felt the frantic beats beneath her palms and whispered a

she

counteracted the poison but a different threat loomed. Iona looked into Cassandra’s blearily focused eyes and instructed her firmly, “Your babies will die if you do not transform right now. You must birth them out of

struggled to her feet, clutching her stomach as waves of pain racked her

or they will

as her body ripped apart and knitted back together beneath her skin, transforming her into the

beast whined and collapsed to the floor and Iona quickly followed. “Now push them out, Cassandra. Let your body do what nature

minutes but Cassandra managed to

began cleaning the babies who had come out

infants. Iona marveled at the olde worlde

a living thing, a God vine to the eternal and immortal. The Mother Goddess granted Iona one last vision as she saw the twins, hand in hand, the male and female, tied to each other in strength and weakness, bringing the clans together

smiled, knowing her time was drawing near. She retrieved the vial from

is that?” Cassandra asked, her voice

they are yours. They would need their

“What?”