8 - PRIDE OF COLDMOON

RYAN'S POV

We finally arrived at the open roof hall, and I could see the king and the council chiefs already seated, including Ralia. Just then, I felt Philip's presence, and turned to see him standing beside me.

"Shall we?" He asked, to which I nodded.

"Sure."

The moment my presence was noticed, the entire place went silent. It was no news that many pack members feared me, because I was the deadliest creature in the supernatural world, at present. That was the problem! I didn't want them to fear me, I wanted them to genuinely love and respect me.

With long strides, Philip and I made our way through the walkway in the middle of the hall, and proceeded to take our reserved seats, just after that of the king. Gradually, the hall became lively once more.

"Your majesty." I bowed before the king. "My apologies for being so tardy."

"Come of it!" He chuckled, looking quite enraptured by an entirely different thing. "The decorations are quite impressive, if you ask me. I'd say you have done a great job, considering this is the first coldmoon festival you're hosting."

"It's all thanks to Ralia." I looked by my left and shot my sister a half smile. "She handled it all."

"Good job, Ralia." King Xavier commended, and I could swear that I had seen Ralia blush.

I looked around, and the entire hall was indeed so beautiful. It was colorful, and the pack members were dressed in their best attires. Save for the royal moon pack; the king's pack, the coldmoon pack was the richest in all of the kingdom, so our festivals always screamed luxury.

Talking of luxury, my eyes fell on the exquisitely dressed families on the high table. The Honourable Families. They always made a statement whenever they stepped out. Moreover, this night was mostly about them. The annual cold moon festival is celebrated to showcase our pack's culture, most especially the yearly procession of the ice relics. The ice relics were cold moon's historical artefacts, and the medium though which our history and traditions were preserved. The relics possessed a kind of energy, or contained a type of spirit, depending on their nature. There were a total of 174 ice relics in cold moon pack.

Right from time, even before the division and separation of the 4 supernatural kingdoms, three bloodlines of the cold moon pack had been chosen to secure and manage the powers these ice relics possessed. These bloodlines were known as 'The Honourables'. The three Honourable bloodlines were; The Craigs, The Kennedys, and The MacQuoids. The MacQuoids were considered the most powerful, out of the three Honourable families. This was because they had custody of 111, out of the 174 ice relics.

'I cannot get over how large miss Mildred MacQuoid's head gear is.' Ralia mindlinked me, and I found myself looking at the woman in question. It really took a lot, to not have burst into laughter. Indeed, her voluminous head gear did make a statement. 'Maybe she is dressing for the plot.' Ralia said, giving a shrug when I turned to look at her.

'How do you mean?' I asked, totally at loss.

'I hear she might be announced as the next in line to be the power custodian of the MacQuoids'.

A power custodian is the member of an honorable family, that has all rights and authority over the ice relics.

They possess a lot of insane abilities as well, making them capable of controlling these relics, should an unforeseen trouble occur. They are literally priests or priestesses of their bloodline. At the age of 60, the power custodians of honourable families are expected to appoint a new custodian to lead and take charge. The present power custodian of the MacQuoids; Hazel, had clocked 60 last year, but she didn't announce a new custodian.

'Hopefully, you're right, because a new custodian needs to be announced indeed. But then, don't you think miss Mildred is a bit too advanced in age?'

'I get what you mean?' Ralia nodded in understanding. 'The newly appointed custodians are supposed to be the new generation. The young blood'.

'And I doubt miss Mildred is anything below 40'. I added.

'I was thinking of her brother.... Dean?'

'Ralia, he is even much older'. I disagreed.

'No, I was referring to his children actually'. She clarified. 'I was thinking one of his children would be appointed. They do possess great abilities, if you ask me'.

'They do'. I agreed. 'But then, it just may not be enough to make them eligible for the position. Most power custodians are extremely powerful, especially the ones from the MacQuoid bloodline. If we're being honest, I don't think any of the children or grandchildren are powerful enough, to take after Hazel'.

'Do you think there is a problem we don't know of?' Ralia's eyes widened comically, making me chuckle.

"What are you both mindlinking each other now?" Philip shot me a curious look.

"Nothing serious." I shrugged. "Now, let's focus on the celebration tonight." I gestured towards the dancers that were being ushered in.

***

***

5 hours later, and we were watching procession of the last ice relic. The ice sword. I cracked my neck in preparation for my next act. I was supposed to step down, and wield the ice sowrd with my hand, letting myself absorb its energy. I guess this was the most anticipated part of the night. I may have been coronated as Alpha, but if I wasn't able to contain the energy of the ice sword, then there was certainly gonna be a problem. It so funny how I hardly thought about an event that would determine the continuation of my rule as Alpha. I guess it had just never really been a cause for worry to me, but right now, it suddenly seemed like it was.

'Do not tell me that you're scared'. Ralia's voice filtered through my mindlink, and I calmly shook my head at her. 'Good'. She muttered almost inaudibly, before closing shut our link.

I sat still and watched as the MacQuoid omegas carried the large glass displaying the ice sword, and came to a stop just where the other ice relics had been previously displayed. Hazel MacQuoid stepped forward, and turned towards us.

"Your majesty, royal Beta." She bowed before them, observing protocol. "Alpha." She repeated her bow. "It is time for you to wield the ice sword."

With a curt nod, I stood from my seat, and made my way down. When I got to her, she gave another bow, and signaled the omegas to move aside. They did immediately, understanding the weight of what was about to take place. If they didn't give space, anyone of them could get hurt. The relics contain unusual powers that could be very dangerous to anyone incapable of controlling them.

I watched as Hazel touched the surface of the glass, and it slide open. Almost immediately, the ice sword made its way out with so much force that had me surprised. It continuously rotated in the air for minutes.

I could hear the many gasps and whispers in the hall, and I wondered what may be going through their minds. Did they think I wouldn't be strong enough to contain the power of the ice sword?

"Alpha!" Hazel called my attention, making me realize the ice sword had finally stopped rotating. It just stayed suspended in the air, emitting visible energy in waves. "Wield it now." At her command, I swallowed deeply and released a low sigh. Then I thought to myself, 'let's get this over and done with'.

The next minute, I walked closer to the suspended ice sword, and stretched my right hand towards it. The closer my hand got, the colder it felt. It wasn't a normal kind of coldness though. It was numbing.

The moment I made a grab for the handle of the sword, I felt an invisible latch around my hand, firmly securing the sword to my hand. The sword began to feel more and more heavy, while I struggled to hold it in place. The next thing I knew, my hand moved in it's own accord, pointing the tip of the sword towards the open sky.

Just then, a great wave swept over the entire place, and I could hear the people trying to remain coordinated. As another wave swept over, my hand vibrated and my whole body felt like it was being electrocuted.

"That's it!" I heard Hazel's voice, but it sounded almost inaudible. I became lost in the entire ritual, and let my body and soul become one with the ice sword. I felt a piercing stab in my heart, making me release a feral growl. Seconds later, the pain disappeared and my full consciousness began to return. The ice sword suddenly didn't feel so heavy anymore, and I could clearly hear everything going on around me.

As a hybrid, my senses were sharper than that of a normal wolf. In fact, I didn't even believe my senses could be sharper, until now. Everything was excessively amplified, and it made me feel like a demigod. A little part of me was a scared. Did I have the ability to control this newly acquired energy? Simply being a hybrid was already a hassle for me.

'Of course, we can!' My wolf jumped in excitement, causing a smile to break onto my face.

"You did it, Alpha." Hazel beamed at me, pride hovering over her features. Immediately, she dropped on one knee, and bowed in submission. "Alpha!!" She yelled out.

The entire pack followed her lead, as they all bent the knee in allegiance. "Alpha!!!" They chorused. I turned to the council chiefs, and they all bent the knee, excluding his majesty and beta Justin, of course.

Raising the ice sword high enough, I let out a loud growl. "The goddess bless cold moon pack!!" I affirmed.

"The goddess bless cold moon pack!!!" They chorused in agreement. While everyone cheered, I heard a tiny voice that screamed some words. To others, it may have been inaudible, but I heard them clearly. It sounded like..... 'to alpha Ryan, the pride of.....'

"To Alpha Ryan; the pride of coldmoon!!!" I suddenly heard the entire pack yell in unison, cutting short my thoughts.

"To Alpha Ryan; the pride of coldmoon!!!!" The Honourable families screamed in solidarity. I stood unmoving in my spot, overwhelmed by such great show of.... love. They loved me. My pack members loved me!

"To Alpha Ryan; the....." Right then and there, I felt my heart constrict painfully in my chest. I could feel my eyes flickering between colours, and a certain scent overwhelming me completely. Was this what I thought?

'Ryan, are you okay?' Ralia's voice filtered through our mindlink.

'I don't know'. I rushed out. 'I think....' I paused my words the moment I noticed a pale skinned lady with extremely black hair, walking towards me. It seemed like everyone had been quick to put the pieces together, because the noise in the hall was gradually reducing.

'Your mate!!' Ralia's voice burst through our mindlink, making me shut her off in mild annoyance. I was trying to focus on my mate, here!

I quickly covered the distance between us, and met her midway, completely mesmerized by her beauty. Her lips quivered, as she breathed heavily, probably feeling as suprised as I was.

"Mate?" I found myself asking, and she gave a comical nod.

"Mate." She replied, a small smile breaking onto her face.

My joy knew no bounds. Finally, she was here.