The Gold Queen (Prequel)

July 1997

*** Emiliano ***

I stare at my opponent, looking for any weaknesses in his stance just like Karina taught me. As we size each other up, I notice a slight hesitation in his right knee when he steps on the balls of his feet. It was slight, but a weakness nonetheless and all I needed to know to formulate my attack.

He charges first, swinging his fist towards my face. I block him with my forearm, leaving his chest wide open for me to attack and I throw a punch at him. He stumbles back, allowing me to gain the upper hand as I kick at his knee and knock him to the ground. In a split second, I’m on top of him, getting him into a choke hold. He struggles in my arms but when it becomes evident I have him locked in, he slams his fist on the mat, effectively ending the challenge.

“And that, ladies and gentlemen,” I sigh, looking at my group of new recruits. “Is how you take down an opponent twice your size.”

I resist the urge to bow as the recruits clap and cheer.

Show off! Estevan laughs and I ignore him.

“Nicely done, Emi,” Danny grins, slapping my back. “Although I probably could have done it better,” he teases.

“In your dreams,” I chuckle, shaking my head at my best friend. “I’ll kick your a*s right now.”

“I’ll tell Valentina,” he smirks. “And then she’ll kick yours.”

I frown at him. He and Valentina had been dating for over a month now and I have to admit, it’s not as weird as I thought it would be… That is until they start kissing. Then I just want to throw up!

Valentina had long lost her interest in the Royal Army and left to focus on her studies. She stayed long enough to learn to defend herself but ultimately decided to start preparing for university. She wants to be a school teacher.

“Excellent work, Altamirano,” Karina praises me as she walks towards us, my recruits quickly getting into formation to salute her.

Danny and I salute her as well. As usual, there is no emotion on her face.

“At ease everyone,” she commands, the recruits turning to me for instruction.

Danny runs off to take care of his recruits and I give mine their final tasks for the night before we head home, leaving just Karina and I to ourselves. I’ve known Karina for over two years now but I still find myself getting flustered in her presence. She didn’t mind so much anymore, although her patience was still thin with me on the training grounds. She was as tough as her father, scrutinizing my every move for any imperfections. I was grateful to her, however. She took me under her wing, training me in both wolf combat, hand to hand combat, and weaponry. Thanks to her, I was now at Sergeant Major rank.

Most people thought her cold hearted but I knew this was far from the truth. She was actually quite funny when she wanted to be and could make me laugh harder than anyone I knew. She was my friend. I would be lost without her.

“What can I do for ya, Lieutenant Colonel?” I ask, a little nervous I did something wrong during the demonstration.

She seems to sense this and bursts into laughter. “You can stop worrying, Altamirano. You’re not in trouble,” she chuckles. “I just got out of the war meeting.”

Ah the war meetings…

War meetings had been increasing in number lately due to the rising number of threats against the kingdom. After Mateo and Sofia marked and wed each other, it became exceedingly difficult to hide who they truly were. Word spread like wildfire with many Kingdoms publicly declaring Sol De Oro an enemy, fearing the potential danger the future Ivory twins posed on their peace.

But not all hope was lost. A number of Kingdoms were eager to form an alliance with us, believing Mateo and Sofia’s heirs would be the saviors Gold and Silver wolves needed. Only time would tell which prediction was correct.

Another pressing issue was the sudden surge in rogue sightings recently. The King thought they were possible spies for the Luna Mayor Kingdom or perhaps their presence was alluding to something far more sinister. We hoped for the former, but were preparing nonetheless, training in a Miramar open field so we could practice using some heavy artillery without damaging the Hacienda or hurting civilians.

I steal a glance past Karina at the War tent to the north and see Sofia and the Queen in a heated argument, both the King and the Royal Gamma trying to keep them apart. Mateo and King Julian stand by and watch with amusement, Julian’s wife, Lorena, looking around uncomfortably.

According to Estrella del Monte Law, Julian could not become King without a Queen for his people. So, shortly after Mateo and Sofia’s wedding, Julian married as well, tying the knot with an Alpha’s daughter from his own kingdom in order to take the crown. King or not, he was still an insufferable a*****e. I didn’t like the way he ignored his wife whenever they visited, like nothing she said mattered. But of course, it was not my place to tell him how to treat his wife and speaking out would only cause problems between our Kingdoms. We were already on thin ice with the alliance, I did not need to make things any worse. Besides, as far as Sol de Oro was concerned, Julian kept his word. Estrella del Monte was our closest ally during these troubling times.

“How did it go?” I ask, nodding in the direction of the Queen and Princess.

“Not well,” Karina sighs. “The Queen and the…”

The sudden sound of a shriek interrupts Karina mid sentence and we search for the source. We see a tall dark figure standing at the top of a hill in the distance, the Moon outlining their shape but the darkness of the evening masking their facial features. Similar figures pour over the hill, their shrieks continuing and the smell of iron overpowering the scent of the ocean breeze from the Miramar beach.

Vampires…

“Get your recruits to a safe location!” Karina barks, the army of vampires growing larger by the second.

Several vampires stop at the top of the hill, lining up on the horizon while I watch in horror as their silhouettes aim something at the sky. The entire scene seems to unfold in slow motion with me straining my eyes at the night sky to see. A wolf near me suddenly drops to the ground with a thud. When I turn to look at her, there’s an arrow sticking out of her forehead, her eyes now still and unmoving. She was dead.

I had never seen a dead wolf before.

“MOVE IT, ALTAMIRANO!” Karina orders, snapping me out of my trance and rushing off to give orders to her subordinates.

Screams pierce the night as hundreds of arrows start to rain down on us. One arrow just barely manages to miss my left ear, leaving a burning sensation in its wake.

I pick up the arrow, bringing the head to my nose for a sniff and wincing when I feel the heat radiating from its tip. Silver and wolfsbane. They were here to kill.

Knowing our weapons would be useless against those lifeless creatures, our soldiers grab anything made of wood to create stakes, including fencing, tables, chairs, and tearing into the weapons cabinets. I look up at the hill, the vampires reloading their arrows while another battalion charges down the hill towards us. There had to be over a thousand of them, greatly outnumbering our forces. Although this was our training field, several of our soldiers were just 13 and were only here to receive their basic training. They were certainly not ready for battle.

I holler at my recruits and within seconds am surrounded by fearful looking little soldiers.

“Follow me. There’s a safety zone in the trees in the southern part of the field,” I command, pointing to the trees I was referring to. “You’ll stay hidden there until the coast is clear.”

“But we want to help!” One of the boys protests.

I didn’t have time to argue, so I put him in a chokehold and snarl in his ear. “Unless you want to die right now, I suggest you do as I say. These b***d suckers don’t see you as little wolves,” I growl at them, arrows whizzing past us. “They see a meal. We get to the trees and you stay there until I come get you. NOW MOVE!” I snap, shoving the young soldier forward.

I didn’t enjoy being authoritative, but my job was to make sure they survived this long enough to become real soldiers. Letting them play hero would only get them killed. We sprint for the trees, careful not to step on bodies of the wounded littering the floor. I knew there was no way in hell I was staying in the cover of the trees when I knew I could save my fellow wolves.

I’m coming back, I mutter to myself as I lead my soldiers to safety.

The shrieks of the vampires seem to be getting closer as they break through our first line of defense. Several of our troops brush past us in a hurry, all carrying wooden weapons to aid their fellow soldiers on the front lines.

In the trees, Danny and another young sergeant have their recruits gathered in the safety of the canopy.

“Did you see any of the b***d suckers?” Danny asks, his eyes darting around on high alert. “Are they close?”

“No,” I huff, placing my hands on my knees and panting from the sprint over. “I saw bodies from the arrows but no vampires.” I straighten up and flick my ear. “Those arrows are silver,” I pant. “And they’ve been dipped in wolfsbane. Those son’s of bitches don’t want us to heal.”

“F**k…” Danny mutters.

“We need the healer!” Someone calls out. “Someone get the healer!”

That was my cue to leave.

I don’t even have to say anything before Danny tells me he’s got my soldiers covered. Racing back towards the battle, I shift into my wolf for better speed and coverage.

My night vision comes through and I come upon a group of 4 vile night crawlers ganging up on two soldiers, one of them bleeding from an arrow impaling his shoulder. He couldn’t heal or shift, the wolfsbane preventing him from doing so. His partner was in wolf form but he was barely standing on his feet, bites and cuts scattered across his furry body.

We can do this, Estevan encourages. Just like Karina taught us.

I lean on my haunches and jump on the first vampire, my jaws clamping down on its head and tearing it clean off. There was no b***d, just a wicked crunching noise from my teeth grinding through bone, reminding me that these creatures were the offspring of Death itself.

The undead body and I collide onto the floor and I immediately lunge at the next vampire, ripping one of its arms off. One of the filthy bastards manages to climb on top of me.

Remember the roll! Estevan suggests as it sinks its nasty fangs in me.

I let myself drop to the floor and roll onto my back, using my paws as leverage to slam myself onto the vampire. I keep slamming despite a third vampire jumping on top of me. Luckily for me, the vampire on my back loosens his grip as I crush him to death and I rip the other vampire’s throat out.

I was nowhere near exhausted as I get on all fours to face the fourth and final vampire, the adrenaline pumping through my veins and breathing life into my every cell.

She was a female, her bright red eyes glaring venom at me.

“You’re going to regret killing my brother,” she snarls, baring her long fangs at me.

She pulls out a sword from her waist band and points it at me, its gleaming silver surface eager to kill. She crouches down a little to gain momentum before thrusting her body at me. I was faster than her though, dodging her hate-filled blade and smacking her over the head with my paw.

She stumbles back, giving me the advantage I needed to rush at her and knock her to the ground. She was dead before her blade even touched the ground, my jaws crushing her skull to dust.

Finished with my attack, I turn my attention to my injured colleagues, healing the wolf with the arrow in his shoulder first. He sighs in relief as I place a paw on his shoulder, my energy electrifying his cells and sealing the bleeding wound until all that remained was a small scar from the silver tip of the arrowhead. I heal the second wolf, feeling my energy drain. A fellow soldier arrives with a torch, burning the dismembered remains of the night crawlers. You could only kill a vampire if it was dismembered and burned. Flames alone would do them no harm.

I push through the minor fatigue that was building up in my muscles, unable to stop until I helped everyone I could. I race deeper into the battlefield, aiding other soldiers in fighting off their attackers and healing those who were debilitated by the silver and wolfsbane.

Twenty minutes into battle, I was starting to feel weaker, the healing process taking its toll the harder I fought. But there was not time to stop. My pack needed me.

As I finish off another b***d sucker, from the corner of my eye I see three vampires trap the Princess, surrounding her and closing off any means of escape. She was wounded, having not one but three silver arrows embedded in her calf, her shoulder, and her chest. The wolfsbane was keeping her from shifting and it was only a matter of time before she would pass out from her injuries. Her palms were engulfed in flames but no matter how many fire balls she threw, the vampires did not ease up on her.

One of her fireballs catches on the shirt of a female vampire, her clothes slowly becoming consumed by the flames. The vampire smiles wickedly at the horrified Princess, the flames doing nothing to her as she continues to advance on her Highness. I look around for Mateo, knowing he would never leave his Princess to fight on her own.

I find him cornered near a tree by 6 vampires, the King preoccupied with helping his own mate.

She’s not going to make it! Estevan shrieks.

Without a moment to lose, I muster up whatever strength I have left and charge at the vampires seeking to hurt the future Queen. I jump on the nearest nightcrawler, sinking my canines into their throat and ripping it out with ease. It was the perfect distraction Sofia needed. She breaks off one of the ends of the arrows sticking out of her body and shoves it into the eye of a vampire. The vampire growls as Sofia puts it in a choke hold and twists off its head, the sickly crunch making my stomach churn.

Seeing she could not escape, the final vampire attempts to flee towards the trees. I rush after her, catching her by the leg and pulling her to the ground. She screams as I drag her back to where Sofia stood, spitting her out at Sofia’s feet. Sofia grips the side of the vampire’s head firmly while I grab onto her neck.

The vampire growls at us, knowing her end was near. She gives one final scream before Sofia and I both pull in opposite directions, decapitating the wicked vampire and silencing her forever. With a touch of her hands, Sofia burns the vampires to ashes while I try to catch my breath.

Completely exhausted, I limp over to Sofia and sit beside her. She too was weak, leaning her body against mine as she g****s in pain. I close my eyes and concentrate on her body, preparing to give her the last drop of my energy.

“No,” she protests, her voice ragged. “S-save your energy.”

But I was no longer listening, focusing on my task to heal her wounds. An electric shock travels between us, the energy leaving my body and flooding hers to heal it. Slowly, her breathing starts to normalize and she pulls the arrows out, her wounds closing and leaving the faintest scars.

“Thank you,” She whispers, wrapping her arms around my neck and nuzzling into me.

Suddenly, a tree branch snaps in front of me , drawing my attention away from the Princess.

That’s when I see it, the arrow headed straight towards us.

On my feet in the blink of an eye, I shove the Princess behind me and shield her with my body. A burst of pain surges from my rib cage, my already weakened wolf struggling to stand. I stumble onto my hind legs and collapse, the wolfsbane from the arrow coursing through my veins with a burning fire.

I try my best to stay awake but the adrenaline that had kept me going had finally worn off. Sofia’s snarls are the last thing I hear before the darkness consumes me.