Before I Rise

Marcus’s POV

I was once again sitting in my office going through the never ending stack of paperwork. I had initially thought that when I became Alpha, I would be more active and not stuck in an office all day. Boy, was I wrong! I spend about seventy five percent of my time in the office. The only time I actually do anything “fun” is when I train in the morning with my pack members. Sometimes I’ll sneak away in the afternoon and train with the Elite warriors in the pack if I get lucky. Recently though, I haven’t done that. If I get a chance to step away from the office during the day, I usually go and track Em down. I would rather spend time with her than with sweaty, smelly men.

Plus, she’s prettier to look at and smells amazing. Xavier said.

Yes, she is pretty. I responded, agreeing with him.

We should take a break now and go find her. Maybe we can have lunch with her!

I mentally and physically rolled my eyes at him. Xavier, it’s literally ten in the morning. We had breakfast with her two hours ago, and now you want to go have lunch with her?

Well maybe she’s hungry again. I know I am. Plus, we don’t actually have to eat lunch. I could be content with a simple snack or even a glass of water with her. It doesn’t matter as long as we can get a few minutes with her. Come on man, just five minutes. That’s all I need. I just miss her!

I shook my head at his desperate pleas. He was more obsessed with Em than I was.

Just as I was about to reply to him, my office phone rang. I debated on whether or not I should answer it. After a few seconds, I decided that it would be best to answer it and get it over with.

“Alpha Marcus speaking.” I said into the phone.

There was some static for a couple of seconds before a voice that I hardly recognized spoke. “Marcus? Can you hear me?”

“Alexis?” I asked, still unsure if it was her or not. It sounded like her, but something was very off about the way she sounded.

“Yes, it’s me. I’m sorry to bother you, but I need your help. It’s bad Marcus, like really bad.” She said, as she began to sob.

The hair on the back of my neck stood at attention. I’ve known Alexis all my life and we’ve been through tough times together, but I have never heard her cry before. She didn’t even cry when she found her parents’ bodies or at their funeral.

“What happened?” I asked her.

She took a deep breath before answering. “We were ambushed by the rogues. They came back Marcus and there were more of them than before. We were completely outnumbered, three to one ratio. Every time we thought we were beating them, more would show up. They came in waves. They seemed organized and they were fighting in sync with each other. This was NOT the typical rogue we’ve dealt with before. Their blood was poisonous as well. Some got on my skin and it burned me. I don’t know how the hell that is possible, I’ve never even heard of something like that before. I don’t know what to do.”

She stopped talking as she started to cry again. It gave me a second to gather my thoughts. I too have never heard of that before. How could blood be that toxic to the point that it burns one’s skin. It seemed like a horror story you tell little kids to scare them, except this wasn’t a story, this was real life.

That’s not normal right? I asked Xavier.

No way, I have never heard of something like that either. I wonder if Elder Morgan could shed some light on this.

Good idea, remind me to ask her to come to our office when I get off the phone with Alexis.

I will. By the way, you should probably ask Alexis if she knows the casualties of her pack yet. Xavier said.

“Alexis, do you know how many people you lost?” I asked.

She started to sob harder than before. “That’s why I’m calling. We lost more than half our pack members. I have a handful of Elite warriors left, my beta and his family got taken out, and my elder was just pronounced dead. Marcus, there’s no one left. It’s all my fault.”

My heart broke for her. It would take a couple of generations to get Blood Moon Pack back to normal. It was one of our biggest fears as Alpha’s to have this happen.

“What can I do to help Alexis?”

She let out a long tired sigh. “Can I send some of the more vulnerable pack members to stay with you? I think these attacks are far from over and I don’t want to lose any more members.”

I thought for a second, “Yeah of course, but how many members does that leave you to fight if you guys are attacked again?”

She was quiet for a long time. The longer she took to respond, the more concerned I became. I had a bad feeling growing in the pit of my stomach.

“Alexis, how many pack members does that leave you?” I asked again.

“Um… none.” She confessed.

I shook my head in utter disbelief. I understood how she felt and why she was acting like this, but there was no way I was going to let her punish herself this way. I was not about to lose my best friend.

“Listen, pack up everything you need and come here. Bring the remainder of your pack members and come stay with me. I have more than enough room. You’ll be safe here.”

“I can’t do that to you. It’s my fault this happened. You tried to tell me not to send your warriors back to you, but I didn’t listen to you and now I’m paying the price.”

I rolled my eyes. “Alexis, you either come here on your own or so help me I will come get you and I will drag you back here if I have too. Just pack everything up and come here. We can talk more about everything when you get here. I just want you here as soon as possible in case the rogues are gearing up to attack you again. The faster you get here, the better. Do you need any assistance in getting here?”

“No, I let the pack know that we are relocating for the time being. I will try to get there within the next few hours.” She said.

“Ok, I’ll get the rooms prepared at the pack house. I’ll keep my cell on me so call me if anything happens.”

“I will. Thank you Marcus, I don’t know how I can ever repay you for this.” She disconnected the phone before I could respond.

Every nerve in my body was on high alert. I still was unsure if this was a personal attack against Blood Moon or if the rogues were planning on hitting every pack they can before someone takes them out. If they are, there was a good chance my pack would be next. That thought sent my heart racing. Em was still very vulnerable and would remain that way until we completed the mate bond.

I got up from my desk and headed out of my office in search of my mate. I wasn’t going to wait another week to complete the mate bond with her. Hopefully after I explain to her what happened with Alexis’s pack, she will feel the same way.