2: The Luna is dead

The mating ceremony of the lycans was in full swing that particular hour.

As if honouring the celebration, there was a full moon brightening the night sky, sending its silver rays down to the earth.

The kingdom of Hayden was in a festive mood as lycans from all over the realm turned up for the special ceremony.

The mating ceremony was a festive occasion where lycans gathered at the kingdom of Hayden to meet their destined mates, the mates the moon goddess had chosen for them. It was a tradition in honour of the moon goddess who was mated to the god of the earth.

Every one hundred years, shifters attended this celebration, bearing gifts to the Supreme Alpha and Luna of Hayden as a way of paying homage to them.

As the celebrations continued, Luna Izabelle suddenly felt a change in the air. She sat upright on her throne, cocking her head to the side, trying to figure out what was out of place.

Her sharp golden eyes scanned the crowd of shifters that were all in a festive mood, eating and drinking to their hearts content. A group of acrobat dancers and fire breathers were displaying, wowing the crowd with their astounding tricks.

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Beside her, her mate Alpha King Xerxes, chuckled merrily and clapped his hands as an encouragement to the dancers before them. He obviously didn't feel the restlessness she felt.

Seated beside him was their son, Alpha Prince Jade. He had his father's brown eyes and snow white hair, and he was staring at the dancers, eyes locked on them as they threw high summersaults into the air.

They were both enjoying the celebration and didn't feel anything out of the ordinary.

So why did the strange feeling remain with her?

She was about to call on the warriors to check on the perimeters and tighten the security when she suddenly changed her mind.

Who would dare step into the den of the lycans?

"I will check on things myself",Luna Izabelle muttered to herself.

No one noticed when she stepped down from the throne and slipped away.

...

"Jade"

"Yes, father",Jade turned his head to answer the call of his father.

"Have you seen your mother?",Alpha Xerxes asked worriedly, his brown eyes scanning the crowd. He hadn't been aware when she stepped down from the throne.

"She was just beside you",Jade frowned. He had been so engrossed in the performance of the acrobats dancers that he didn't notice when his mother slipped out of the throne.

"Where could she be?",Alpha Xerxes wondered. He had a mane of pure white hair and a matching white beard. His honey brown eyes scanned the crowd before him, wondering where his mate could be.

Suddenly he noticed four lycan warriors hurrying towards them.

The look in their eyes was one of dread, and Alpha Xerxes felt fear coil at the pit of his stomach.

"Supreme Alpha",the warriors bowed deeply and Alpha Xerxes didn't waste time before he asked the question troubling him.

"Do you know the whereabouts of my Luna?"

The warriors exchanged fearful looks before turning back to the king. They bowed again.

"Yes Alpha, we do",one answered in a shaky voice.

"Well, where is she?",Alpha Xerxes demanded impatiently.

The celebrations continued and the crowd screamed as the dancers made them go wild. But all these didn't catch the Alpha's attention as he was only focused on the whereabouts of his mate.

The warriors hesitated, wondering how to break the news to the Alpha.

"Answer me this instant!",Xerxes thundered at them.

"Supreme Alpha, the Luna is dead",one of the warriors finally broke the news.

Xerxes froze and his eyes, his brown eyes crumbled and bled red as the news registered in him.

Beside him, Jade also turned pale as he heard the warriors. It couldn't be, he thought. His mother had just been sitting beside them a few minutes ago. How did she end up dead?

"Where is she?",Alpha Xerxes growled.

"The Cave of the Soul Gem",the same warrior who broke the news voiced out quickly.

Alpha Xerxes stood up abruptly and marched out of the throne.

Before he rushed off after his father, Jade grabbed the nearest warrior and issued a command in a wrathful voice.

"No one leaves the premises. Issue a lockdown now!"

...

Alpha Xerxes shifted the moment he stepped away from the celebrations. His eyes remained a terrifying red as bones popped and rearranged into the form of an enormous white lycan.

The white beast shook out his fur and raced towards the Cave of The Soul Gem. His heart slammed within him as rage threatened to take over his body. A part of him prayed his mate was still alive, because if she was indeed dead, he would kill until he found her murderers.

In a matter of seconds, he arrived at the cave and smoothly shifted back into his human form.

The moment he stepped into the cave, he was assailed with a gut wrenching pain that threatened to tear out his heart.

His eyes landed on the lifeless body of his mate and he collapsed beside her. He lifted one hand and gently touched Izabelle's cheek, turning her face towards him to stare at her face.

Her eyes remained closed in death.

He felt the pain again as the mate bond between him and his mate was severed. It clenched his heart, twisting his guts and making him let out a loud roar.

His mate was dead.

Another white lycan rushed into the cave and froze at the sight of the Alpha and Luna. It was Jade. He shifted into his human form and rushed to his mother's side, placing two fingers on the side of her neck to feel for a pulse.

There was none. She was dead.

Jade clenched his fists in anger and shut his eyes as he watched his father suffer the pain of the shattered mate bond. It was a pain no shifter ever hoped to feel. Jade felt a little pain as the bond connecting him to his mother was severed, but it was nothing compared to the pain his father was going through at that moment.

"Izabelle",Alpha Xerxes groaned his mate's name in pain, hoping to the moon goddess that she would come awake. But Luna Izabelle remained lifeless, her body slowly going cold.

The warriors that came with Jade bowed their heads at the death of the Supreme Luna. What was supposed to be a day of celebration became a day of death and mourning as the news of Luna Izabelle's death spread round Hayden.

As Alpha Xerxes battled with the pain within him and the loss of his mate, a few other shifters raced into the cave.

One stepped forward and stared unbelievably at the lifeless body of the Luna.

"I don't believe this",he whispered. He had a striking resemblance to Alpha Xerxes with the same brown eyes, but instead his hair was a startling red colour.

He was Apollo, brother to Alpha Xerxes.

Suddenly Apollo rushed deeper into the cave and stared at the spot where the Soul Gem was supposed to be. Dark thick veins had begun to spread out from the spot, crawling towards the wall and slowly stretching towards the entrance of the cave.

If the Gem wasn't returned, those dark veins would take over Hayden and the kingdom of the lycanthropes would be destroyed.

"Whoever did this didn't come for Luna Izabelle",Apollo muttered.

Alpha Xerxes slowly lifted his head and stared at his brother. His eyes were blood red, a proof of the pain he was experiencing.

"What do you mean?",he growled.

"The Soul Gem",Apollo continued. "It's gone. Stolen"

Jade's head snapped up when he heard his uncle. The Soul Gem was gone? He rushed to the spot where the precious Gem was and stood frozen beside Apollo.

"Father",he called in panic. "It's true. The Soul Gem is gone"

"Your mother must have tried to protect it and died in the process",Apollo shook his head in sadness.

Behind him, Alpha Xerxes was having a hard time controlling his rage. His chest heaved and his body began to tremble violently.

He lifted his head up and let out an earth shattering roar, shaking the cave tremendously.

Jade, Apollo and the other shifters immediately fell to their knees as they experienced the raw power of the Supreme Alpha. They bowed their heads to the ground, a sign of respect and surrender to the power of the Supreme Alpha.

"Father, please",Jade pleaded, his head still bowed deeply. "Control your rage. Do not let the kingdom perish under your fury"

"Brother, please calm your fury",Apollo pleaded next. "I'm sure there is still hope of finding the Soul Gem"

It took a long while before Alpha Xerxes was able to put a leash on his fury. He buried his face in his mate's hair, cursing death for taking her away from him.

A warrior rushed into the cave and knelt before Alpha Xerxes.

"Supreme Alpha",he hailed respectfully. "The kingdom has been placed on lockdown, and every shifter has been searched and interrogated. We didn't find the killer"

At the same time, Jade saw something out of the corner of his eyes. He walked towards the darker part of the cave and crouched in front of the object.

A dagger, stained with blood.

"I know who the murderer is",he said in a cold voice.