The First King

“Prew!” Konrad shouted within his soul. This was not an illusion. She was actually here.

As the witch fell to the ground beside him, Prew jumped down from Meeka’s back. She quickly slapped his rump, sending him away from the fight. Konrad watched as she nocked another arrow, sending it into the eye of a man who ran to her with a black sword. Prew did not flinch as the witch fell before her, nearly missing her foot by a few inches. Konrad’s heart fluttered when she turned to him. Even with the dark, billowing clouds overhead, the air around her looked bright. He did not know where she had come from, but he could see the worry in her face as she knelt down beside him. She dropped everything to rush to his side; to save him. Konrad wanted nothing more than to shift and embrace her tightly.

Prew removed the chains from around the wolf’s legs and mouth, doing her best not to let the silver burn him even further. As Nero stood to his feet, he looked directly into her eyes. At that moment, he could not help but feel overwhelmed by his feelings for her. For so long, Konrad’s wolf spirit had pushed thoughts of Prew away in favor of Lorelei. Now, without her here, without a mate to focus on, Nero was able to finally see Prew. With a whimper, the wolf leaned his head against her shoulder. Prew could not help but sigh as she wrapped her arms around his neck. As she gripped his fur tightly, she watched the fighting that was happening around them. Some witches attempted to reach them, but so many wolves and humans were holding them back.

“We need to go help,” Prew murmured as she pulled away from Nero. She stood up, ignoring the growl that came from the wolf. They could not stay there, holding one another while everyone else fought to keep them safe. But, it seemed the wolf disagreed. He licked at her hand, pulling her attention back to him. Prew ran her fingers over his head, giving him a gentle smile. “It’s alright. I’ll still be here when the fighting is done.”

Nero stared up at her, finally giving her a nod of his head. As Prew pulled an arrow from her quiver, Konrad turned his attention to everything around him. There was a circle of wolves that kept the witches from getting to him and Prew. Though they were reluctant to leave her side, Nero lunged forward, jumping over another wolf to grab at a witch. His teeth sank into the man’s arm, tugging it with so much force that it popped the shoulder out of its socket. As the man screamed in pain, Nero’s claws slashed into his chest.

A surge of energy flowed through Konrad and Nero as they moved on to the next witch. It was exhilarating to kill, to see the light fading from their eyes. It was as if what had happened minutes ago, when Konrad had given up, was only a dream—just a nightmare in the sea of endless pain and sorrow—a moment of weakness that was now furthest from his thoughts.

It did not take long after Prew’s arrival for the witches to begin to realize they were outnumbered. More of their own were dying than any wolf or human. While looking for a chance to retreat, several witches aimed their dark magic into the already black sky. It helped to block out the bits of light that seeped through, coating the ground in endless shadows. With a way out, the witches melted into the ground, disappearing before anyone could stop them.

The air was eerily still. There was a rumble that originated from the dark clouds and echoed across the skies. Lightning bolts struck the ground, lighting up the way to the volcano. As the witches entered the safety of Thresnora, the skies began to clear up. Though some of the black clouds stayed, it was less than when the fighting had started. The sun began to shine, and the wind blew, creating waves in the grassy field.

Konrad shifted into his human form, panting from exhaustion. As much as he wanted to chase after the witches, he couldn't. He was in no condition to continue fighting, and neither were some of his people. As he turned around to search for Prew, he saw her surrounded by a group of wolves. He did not recognize them, but he heard them calling her Luna. Konrad stared at them as Nero growled from within his soul.

"Thank the Goddess, you are alright," a voice called out. Konrad turned his head, noticing Rowan walking up to him. "I honestly didn't think we would make it in time."

"Who are those people with Prew?" Konrad questioned with a frown. "Are they from the Wildfang pack?"

"No, that is all of the warriors from the Frostpaws," Rowan answered as he looked at the crowd. "Alder sent them with the Luna. Oh! You should have seen it; a witch cast a spe-"

Konrad growled as he turned on his heels, walking away before Rowan could finish talking. His cousin hurried after him, confused by why he was leaving so quickly.

"Don't you want to go talk to her?" Rowan inquired as he furrowed his brows. "The Luna was so anxious when we saw the red smoke. We all were."

Konrad grunted as he rolled his eyes. He was in no mood to listen about how concerned Prew was. Not while another pack surrounded her, calling her their Luna. As he stormed off, all he saw was red. Not red for blood and vengeance but for jealousy and anger.

"Alpha? What's wrong?"

"What?!" Konrad yelled as he turned around, grabbing Rowan's shirt. "What do you want now? Are you here to tell me what I must do with my wife?"

"I-I-I don't understand," Rowan stuttered as he looked at his cousin. His blue eyes were dark and filled with fury.

"Of course, you don't," Konrad scoffed as he tossed Rowan aside. "Werelia Inttum."

He shifted into Nero, rushing off before Rowan could say anything further. As he took off, other wolves and soldiers followed him. Prew didn't notice that Konrad was gone until he was far away. She frowned at the realization that he left without finding her first. Was it just her that felt the spark of connection earlier? Or was he still upset over her remarks about Alder nearly two weeks ago?

"Let's head down to the camp," she instructed to those around her.

With the help of a wolf, Prew climbed onto Meeka. She pushed her horse, doing her best to catch up to Konrad. Though Meeka was growing weary from the day's events, so was Nero. He was not running as fast as some of the other wolves, and after several miles, Prew was able to catch up to him. She looked down at the wolf, wishing he would spare her a glance, but he kept his eyes forward, looking only at the grass and road that lay before him. After arriving at the camp, Prew dismounted Meeka and chased after Konrad. When he had shifted back into his human form, she grabbed his arm, forcing him to stop. He growled as he finally turned to face her.

"What?!"

"I'm sorry," Prew stated as she tried to fight back her anger. "I didn't mean to upset you that morning in my room. I meant nothing by it, truly."

Konrad nodded as he licked his dry lips. As much as he wanted to believe her, there was so much weighing on his mind. For another pack to call her their Luna, it was all but proof that she had been with Alder. But the look on her face, the sincerity in her eyes, only made his heart harder. As Konrad leaned forward, Prew lifted her chin and closed her eyes. She thought they were going to kiss, but he instead pecked her cheek.

"Thanks for helping. I'm going to go bathe in the river," he stated as he stepped back from her. Without looking back at Prew, Konrad turned around and headed for the water, followed by many of the men.

Though there was excitement in the air, he seemed to ignore it. The victory against the witches was not on his mind. All that Konrad could think about was Alder touching his wife. As Konrad removed his clothes, he seethed over thoughts of Alder. What all did the Alpha do to Prew? Where did his hands touch her? Had Alder laid with her?

Konrad's body grew hotter and hotter by the second. Not even the cool water that he splashed onto him helped. So much fury surged through him, to the point that his hands began to tremble. And to make it worse, he could feel eyes staring at him. Konrad glanced behind him, noticing that Rowan sat on the shoreline. After another few minutes, he scowled as he stomped out of the water. Once he put his pants back on, he sat on the ground beside his cousin. At first, both men were silent as they looked ahead, watching the river. Though Rowan had wanted to speak, he couldn't. Konrad's aura was strong, radiating dominance and control. And yet, both men often forgot that Rowan's wolf was an alpha, too. He had never once used his power, choosing instead to defer to Konrad. But today was different. Today, Rowan wanted answers from his cousin, and it took every bit of strength that he could summon to break through Konrad's aura.

"What is your problem?" He questioned as his voice wavered.

"How often did he sleep with her?" Konrad growled as he refused to look away from the water.

"What? Who?"

"Alder!" Konrad shouted, garnering the attention of the other men in the water. "How many times did he sleep with my wife?!"

"None!"

"And how would you know?"

"Because the Luna commanded that I sleep in front of her tent," Rowan retorted angrily.

"Oh? I'm sure he slipped past you while you slept," Konrad scoffed.

"Do you think me that terrible of a wolf? If that is the case, why put me in charge of protecting the Luna?" Rowan questioned as he looked at his cousin with a pained expression. "Do you really think that little of me? If you do, please say so. I will go back home right now."

"I don't think little of you," Konrad replied with a deep sigh. "You are the only person who I can trust. But I need you to be honest with me. Did Alder touch my wife?"

"No, Alder did not touch Prew or any other woman."

"Then why does his pack call her Luna? I cannot think of any reason they would do that if not for her sleeping with him." Konrad said as he buried his face in his hands.

"Oh, that? Konrad, it isn't what you think," Rowan assured him with a light chuckle. "The Luna took her silver dagger and used it to pin Alpha Alder to a tree. I wasn't there, but it happened in front of most of his people. Supposedly, she told him that if he ever disrespected her again, she would kill him and take over his pack."

"Oh," Konrad murmured as he glanced at Rowan. Though he did his best to hide his smile, there was a slight curl on the edges of his lips.

"I can assure you, the Luna did nothing improper while we were out. In fact, she has never once been alone with anyone, even Sofia. And once it was dark out, she retired to her tent… alone. I had assumed it was just her being tired from the travel, but now I see it was you. Your possessiveness weighs so heavily on her, and you don't even care."

"I've already warned you about commenting on my marriage," Konrad growled.

"Yeah, you have," Rowan nodded. "But now you are going to listen. Back there, in that camp, is a woman who bends over backward just to keep you from getting jealous—as if you have any reason for it! She does nothing but protect and lead us. What is it?"

"What is what?"

"What is it about the Luna that you do not like? Because I know that you have a wife who cares about you and what you think. I could only dream to one day have a mate as devoted as she is. But you don't seem to care. So, what is it? What makes her not good enough for you? No… You know what? I think that she is too good for you. That’s the problem."

Konrad clenched his jaw as he listened to Rowan. If it weren't for the fact that so many eyes were on them, he would have attacked his cousin. Instead, he rose to his feet, turning away to head back into the camp.

"Konrad!" Rowan called out. "If you keep acting blind to what stands in front of you, eventually, it won't be there anymore. She will leave and do the things that you claim she does now, but it will be you pushing her to do them."

Konrad glanced back for a moment, staring at Rowan with a mixture of fury and surprise. This was the first time his cousin had stood up to him in this way. But nothing that he said was wrong. For so long, Konrad had pushed Prew away, but now she was all he wanted. As he turned around, continuing his walk up to the camp, he could not help but think it was too late. There were too many mistakes on his part. There was no way that Prew would ever love him, not after his lies, not after Lorelei. He was foolish to think that she wanted the same things as he did. Deep down, Konrad could not help but think that his own self-doubts caused him to be so possessive over her. Rowan was right... Prew was too good for him.