The Gold Queen (Prequel)

***Karina***

Silver arrows stain the battlefield with our b***d, screams and cries of help drowning out the pounding of my chest. I had tried to reach the eastern field, but it seemed a vampire or a wounded soldier always stood in my path.

But I could not give up. I had to reach the eastern field.

As I push past a soldier, I feel something charge at me at full speed, knocking my wolf to the ground. I don’t even get the chance to blink, feeling a pair of fangs dig into my flesh as the vampire and I roll on the ground for control. It gains the upper hand as it climbs on top of me, its fangs still buried in my paw. My jaws clamp down on the vampire’s shoulder and I swing my head to the side, using all my strength to fling the vampire off of me. I yelp out in pain as my paw is torn open by the sudden movement. Finally free, I roll back onto my feet, careful not to put too much weight on my injured paw and limp to the vampire, ripping its head off and ending its miserable existence.

Panting furiously, I continue my journey to the east, every muscle in my body aching for a rest. I was careful on the trek, maneuvering between bodies to avoid another attack. My heart breaks as the number of bodies increases. My pack members were dying and I could only hope Moon Goddess was welcoming them home.

Forcing back my tears as I tiptoe over the bodies, I push onward knowing the eastern field was just within reach.

“Mami, where are you?” I mind-link my mother, frantically looking around the field for her and Penelope.

Mom was not much of a warrior but she had been on the field today for a refresher course in self defense while Penelope had been stationed at the eastern field, perfecting her sword fighting skills with a trainer. She was whom I was most worried about. At just twelve years old, Penelope was an excellent warrior, but my little sister still had no wolf and a stray arrow could easily kill her.

“We’re by the boxing rings! Hurry! I need your help!” My mother responds, her link weak.

As I approach the rings, my mother comes into view, Penelope fighting just behind her. My heart drops to the pit of my stomach as I realize they are cornered and vastly outnumbered.

The pain in my paw suddenly dries up, the adrenaline giving me the strength to break into a sprint towards my mother and sister.

The smell of iron fills my nostrils and I lean into my hind legs to launch myself into the air when a powerful force knocks me back mid air.

I collide with the earth, hearing the crunch of my bones breaking from the sheer force of my fall. I have no air in my lungs as I look up to see not one but two vampires pinning me down to the ground. They grin at me, baring their wicked fangs at me in delight.

“Poor little wolf…” The female vampire sneers, attempting to caress my snout.

I snarl, snapping my jaws at the wicked nightcrawler mocking my anger and she laughs. The two vampires force me onto my hind legs, the male vampire with jet black hair grabbing me from behind in a choke hold, forcing me to face my mother and sister. The female licks my still bleeding paw, a whimper of fear escaping my lips.

“I’m going to enjoy this,” the female vampire hisses, her blonde eyebrows lifting up in excitement.

She buries her fangs in my bleeding flesh, forcing a loud whine from my lips as the unbelievable pain surges through me. Little did I know, in a blink of an eye, my life was about to change, the following events setting me on a course to my own destruction.

In her exhaustion, my mother makes the fatal mistake of turning to look at me, giving her attackers the perfect opportunity to seal her fate. A wicked b***d sucker lunges at her, latching his fangs onto her throat. In a swift motion, her neck is sliced open, b***d spraying onto her collarbone and chest. Her body hits the ground, the vampire climbing on top of her to feast on the life spilling from her wound.

No! I wail, desperately seeking freedom from my two captors. No! Mami, please! Get up! GET UP!”

I watch as the life leaves her eyes, her body growing still beneath the vampire. My wolf snarls, bucking and kicking frantically at the vampires in an attempt to reach my mother. I hear the familiar howl of my father from across the field, his wolf feeling the loss of its mate. Every note laced with pain breaks my heart; my father was a dark man, my mother his only light… And she was now gone. But my nightmare was far from over.

Now completely alone, Penelope’s body was growing tired from the fighting. She did not have the stamina of a wolf just yet and as the fight for her life continues, I see a dark figure approach from the woods directly behind her, a bow and silver arrow in its hands.

Penelope look out! I want to scream, but I was still in my wolf form and she did not have a mind-link just yet.

Desperate to get her attention, I howl with all my might, hoping she’ll turn to see in time.

But I was too late.

The vampire archer raises his bow, his deadly arrow aimed at my sister. I struggle against the vampire drinking my b***d and manage to sink my canines into her shoulder, biting down with all the strength I had to give. She lets go of my paw and I act quickly, clamping down on her head. The vampire holding me back tightens his grip to block the air from entering my lungs and keep me from killing his partner.

*Warning: Gruesome violence depicted*

***Karina***

I gasp for air, kicking my legs in panic. My bulging eyes look up in time to see the archer release the arrow, its silver tip slicing through the cool night air. I watch its flight path and howl as it pierces through my sister’s back. Her body stiffens, her arms instinctively freezing in place. The archer draws another arrow, this time aiming for the back of her calf. She’s on the ground in an instant, allowing the vampire she was fighting to pin her down.

Penelope!!!! I cry out, my wolf howling with rage.

A pure fury fuels me to push onward as I hear Penelope’s screams and I once again sink my canines into the female. She pulls back to escape my jaws and I use the momentum to plant my front paws on the ground. Now on my four feet, I drop down to the ground, the male vampire that had been choking me now fully on my back while the female was still in my jaws. I roll over, crushing the male with my body and knocking the female to the ground. I bite down on the female’s head and rip it clean off before turning my attention to the male and doing the same.

Pumped full of adrenaline, I turn my attention to the archer now aiming his bow at me. Baring my teeth, I lean forward on my paws and snarl, the archer drawing back the arrow. The silver arrow flies towards me as I rush at him, missing me by a few centimeters. He pulls out another arrow from his quiver but before he can reload his bow, I pounce on him, ripping the bow from his arms and digging my teeth into his cold flesh. He struggles against me as I pin him down with my paw, my claws shredding through his velvety skin. Blinded by pure rage, I tear the archer limb from limb, until all that remains are the mauled ribbons of his exposed carcass.

A group of wolf soldiers led by my father finally arrives, instantly attacking the vampires that had swarmed my mother’s body. My father didn’t hesitate to rip apart every vampire that came sprinting towards him.

In the midst of the chaos, I search for my sister and find her lying on the ground in a pool of her own b***d, still breathing. Still alive. Shifting back to my human, I sit beside her, pulling her bleeding body onto my lap.

“K-Karina?” she whimpers, b***d spilling from her trembling lips. “Rina, I’m cold. “

Tears blur my vision as I brush away the matted hair on her face. “It’s okay, Lele. I’m here. You’re going to be okay,” I murmur softly, clutching her bruised face. “You’re going to be okay. I promise.”

“Y-you promise?” she coughs, choking on her own b***d.

“Yeah, Lele. I promise,” I cry, forcing a smile on my face as I k**s her forehead. “You’re going to be okay.”

“I wanna go – I wanna go home. I wanna go home,” she whispers hysterically, her breath ragged. “Can we please go home, now?”

“You wanna go home?” I nod, caressing her cheek. “Okay, Lele we can go home.”

Her eyes roll back as she starts to fade and I shake her shoulders, forcing her eyes to open again.

“No, Lele. Stay with me. You gotta stay with me,” I snap, tapping her cheeks and she smiles. “There ya go, Lele. Just look at me. Just look me in the eyes,” I pant, cupping her cheeks. “Please stay with me, Lele. Stay with me!”

I frantically wipe at her mouth as she coughs up more b***d onto my lap.

“I’m sorry,” she apologizes, her voice weak and raspy. “That’s a lot.. That’s a lot of b-b***d..”

“No, Lele it’s okay,” I smile, wiping the sweat on her forehead. “I-It’s okay. It’s okay.” I place my hand over the largest wound on her shoulder. “It’s not that bad, Lele. It’s not that bad. You’ll be okay. I promise.”

She takes a deep breath and looks up at me with tear filled eyes. “It’s okay, Rina. It’s okay. I can go home.”

“We can go home,” I repeat, quickly wiping my tears. “We can go home. We can go…”

A small ragged breath leaves her lips and she suddenly goes very still in my arms. I tap her cheeks, hoping to wake her up again, but her eyes remain unmoving, staring into oblivion.

“No, Lele. Wake up,” I sob, shaking her body in hopes of a miracle. But it doesn’t happen. “Lele! Lele!” I scream, clutching her face to my chest. “LELE! LELE! WAKE UP, LELE! YOU CAN’T DIE! YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME! YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME!”

My fathers wails ring in my ears as the last of the vampires are killed and he holds my mother in his arms, kissing her cheeks over and over again.

I look out at the battlefield and realize the fight is practically over, a few soldiers chasing after the last of the vampires who fled towards the woods. My eyes scan for the one wolf who could possibly save my sister, but as I search, I find no trace of him.

A group of wolves offer to take my sister off my hands but I refuse, pressing her cold limp body against mine to give her my warmth.

“She’s okay,” I whimper. “She’s just sleeping. I need.. I need to get her to the hospital. Can you help me take her to the hospital?”

They stare back at me with pity.

“She’s dead, Lieutenant Colonel,” a soldier says, his voice quiet.

“No,” I shake my head. “N-no. No she’s not.” I lift her up a little and carry her tiny body in my arms. “She just needs the healer. Where is Emiliano?”

The soldiers exchange glances before one of them finally sighs and speaks up.

“He was injured pretty badly saving the Princess and was taken off the field twenty minutes ago,” he reports. “He’s not doing too good.”

I feel my knees start to shake, my only hope lost for good. Before I can collapse, the soldiers hold me up, taking my sister from my arms.

“You’re okay, Lieutenant. We’ve got your sister,” one of them soothes.

I am too tired to argue and let them take her from me. One of them drapes a blanket over me and I blush having completely forgotten I was nude.

One of them tries to carry me but I was determined to leave this battlefield on my own two feet so I snarl at him. He backs off and I walk towards my father as he wept over his mate.

“Papi, I -“

“Don’t touch me!” He growls, looking up at me with venom in his eyes. “Eleven years! Eleven years I’ve trained you and for what? So you could just let your mother die?” He sneers, his eyes blackening with anger.

I stare at him, stunned by his reaction.

He doesn’t mean that, Tanya reassures.

“Vete Karina. No te quiero ver. {Leave. I don’t want to see you!}” he snaps when I am just completely still. “QUE TE LARGES! {LEAVE!}.”

I look down at my mother’s body, my father holding her protectively and caressing her hair. Tears fill my eyes as a soldier ushers me to a makeshift medic tent where other soldiers were being treated for their wounds. As we make our way over, I stare out onto the battlefield, overwhelmed by the loss of life, both wolf and vampire.

A soldier comes by to check my arm. I had completely forgotten it had been torn open and sucked on by a bloodsucker, the pain numbed by the death of my mother and sister. It was healing well on its own but the medic bandages me up anyways before moving on to his next patient. I go outside and sit on a bench, allowing the last hour to sink into my bones

Screams and whimpers echo throughout the tent as more bodies and injured wolves are dragged in. It was a horrifying sight and I could feel my heart turn to stone in anger.

This was all the Princess’s fault! She chose her mate and my mother and sister paid the price! To make matters worse, my only friend was somewhere in a hospital fighting for his life after nearly giving it up for her!

The longer I sat on the bench, listening to the screams of the soldiers and allowing the anger to fester inside me, the greater my hatred grew for the Princess. The only thought that consoled me was the possibility of Emiliano making it out of this ordeal.

The Queen is brought in, her injuries minor and she quickly grabs some supplies to help out the medics. As she passes by me, I reach out and grab her arm.

“Y-your majesty,” I whimper. “Have you seen Emiliano? Is he still alive?”

Her eyes roam me and when she sees my tear stained cheeks, she sets aside her supplies and takes me in her arms. “I am sorry for your loss, mija,” she whispers, my tears staining her cloak. “I am so very sorry.” Her grip tightens on me and I let her hold me, the hug reminding me of my mother’s embrace. “Emiliano is in the Luna de Jade pack hospital here in Miramar,” she responds after a long hug. “Would you like to see him?”

My throat is too dry to answer, so I just nod and she hugs me once more, her eyes fogging over. Two soldiers arrive.

“Take Karina to the hospital to see the Healer,” she instructs.

—

The drive to the Luna de Jade pack is short, luckily, and I’m taken to the waiting room where the Princess and Emiliano’s family are anxiously waiting for news from the doctors. I almost growl at the sight of the Princess but quickly tuck away my anger and plant myself in a chair farthest from the group. We wait for almost two hours with no news on his status.

A nurse brings me scrubs to put on as the blanket was still the only thing covering my nudity and I curl up in my chair, replaying my sister’s death over and over in my head.

“You okay?” a small voice asks and I look up to see Valentina sitting in the chair next to me.

“I’m fine,” I mutter.

Valentina frowns but says nothing else.

“How is he?” I ask, looking over at the Princess seeking solace in her mate.

“He’s still in surgery,” She whimpers, wiping away at the tears that had pooled in her eyes. “The arrow punctured his lung and he has a lot of internal bleeding going on,” she says.

I don’t know what possesses me, but I reach for her hand and squeeze it. She looks down at our hands and offers me a weak smile as we both wait in silence to hear news from the doctors.