Ashlyn
I think I’m somewhere in my subconscious. I know my eyes are closed but I see Tundra, she’s sitting close by staring at me.
“Tundra?” I whispered.
“I’m here, Ashlyn. You are not alone. Come.” She stood up, turning, she started walking away from me. Was I dreaming? The last thing I remember was being at the club and Mason kissing me. I stood up on shaky legs to follow her. She stopped at a glowing purple corded thing sitting down beside it.
“You need to break this. It’s the only way to break the bond with Ian.” She told me.
“I don’t understand. This is the bond?” I asked her, confused.
“The pain will get worse before it gets better, but you must be strong. I will not allow us to die.” She told me.
“Tundra, what is going on?” I asked her.
“Someone gave you a love potion, Ashlyn. The bond we shared with Ian wasn’t real. I don’t understand, but the kiss with Mason made the magic surface, and now we need to break it.” She explained.
I was still confused, but I trusted my wolf. I walked over to her and she nudged me to touch the cord. When I reached out to touch it, it burnt my hand. I pulled away, looking at Tundra.
“It’s okay, Ashlyn. It will hurt, but I’m here. The magic is powerful, but we are stronger.” She said with confidence. How could she be so confident in me? I reached out to touch the cord again. It burned so hot and it felt like my entire arm was on fire.
“That’s it, Ashlyn, pull it apart!” Tundra said, cheering me on. I put my other hand in so I could pull it apart. I started gritting my teeth, trying not to cry out. My whole body was on fire and shaking in pain.
Trying to pull it apart was like trying to pull a thick, sticky slim apart. I couldn’t even wrap my hands around it. That’s how thick it was. And then it was like a powerful magnet trying to keep itself together. But the pain the magic inflicted on my body was the worst I’d ever experienced. Every time I pulled a piece off, my body would burn hotter, the magic trying to protect itself. I was trying to get through it, but I couldn’t.
“Tundra, I can’t do this!” I yelled at her, then I screamed out in pain.
“You need to do this. Keep going. I’m right here.” She said, trying to motivate me to keep going.
I had tears running down my face, and I was screaming through the pain. It felt like I had been pulling at this forever. Covered in sweat, I was kneeling by the time I was almost through the cord. It was no longer glowing. I pulled the last piece apart and fell onto all fours.
“You did it!” Tundra howled. I felt like it had ripped apart my body. I couldn’t breathe. I fell to the ground, into darkness.
I woke up to something wet on my face. I opened my eyes to see Tundra licking me.
“You did it, Ashlyn. You broke the magic”. She exclaimed, and I could see her tail wagging. I sat back on my heels as I looked around. My surroundings had changed. We were sitting in a clearing surrounded by a dense forest. There was a waterfall that fed into a pool and then let out into a small stream.
“Where are we?” I asked Tundra, in awe.
This place was beautiful, and I felt an overwhelming peace here. I stood up and walked over to the pool of water. The sound of the waterfall was magical. I looked over the rocks that sat around the pool to look at the blue-green water. The rocks at the bottom sparkled like diamonds.
I laid down on my back on one of the bigger rocks, letting one of my arm drag in the water, giving myself a moment to close my eyes. The pain was gone, and I finally felt like I could relax.
“Tundra, did we die?” I asked her, eyes closed, listening to the water.
“No, my daughter, you are much too strong for death to come that easily.” Said a voice that I hoped I would hear again. Mother.
“Mom?” I opened my eyes and sat up. My mother was standing by Tundra, patting her head.
“Hello Ashlyn.” She said with a grin.
I ran over to her, wrapping her in a hug. She hugged me back with just as much force as I hugged her.
“I’ve missed you so much!” I cried into her neck. “Please, tell me you’re not dead, that daddy isn’t dead.” I sobbed. For a long time, I wanted this moment. I just wanted to be with my parents again. My mom pulled away from me, holding my shoulders. She had tears running down her cheeks.
“Oh, Ashlyn. I wish I could tell you we aren’t dead, but that wouldn’t be the truth.” She told me, her voice cracking with emotion.
“Come sit. We have little time.” She said, leading me to sit on the big rock I was lying on moments ago. When she turned to face me, I could tell that she was now serious.
“Mom, what is going on?” I asked her through my sniffles.
“I need to tell you about us, sweetheart. I wish I could have been there when you shifted. Tundra is such a beautiful wolf.” Tundra wandered over and sat by our feet. She was purring at my mom’s comment. She rested her head on mom’s lap. I looked into her eyes after she took my cheeks in her hands.
“We are special wolves. The moon goddess has blessed my bloodline. Not only do you have a wolf with great powers, but you have the powers of the elements. You both are so powerful, my daughter.” She told me, tears returning to her eyes.
“I don’t understand. What powers?” I asked her, confused. I had to be dreaming.
“Listen to me carefully. We are running out of time. You need to protect yourself. Listen to Tundra. She will help you. There are forces after you, after your power.”
“But I don’t understand. I don’t have powers?” I told her.
“Tundra will help you. That fake bond was suppressing them. You are so strong, my daughter. You will have them mastered in no time.” She said, smiling at me.
“Fake bond? I don’t understand. What about Ian and I?” I asked her.
“Ian was never your goddess given mate.” She told me and I gasped. “The mate’s bond with him was a love potion. The cord you broke was the magic holding you two together. Whatever happened, you were able to unlock the magic so it could be broken. Usually, a spell can only be broken by the person who performed the spell.” She explained.
“Then how did I break it? What does this all mean? Who would waste a love potion on Ian and I?” I asked her, stunned. My mind was racing with so many unanswered questions.
“I’m sorry, you must go back now, my Ashlyn. Trust in the king. He’s your godfather.” She told me, before kissing my forehead.
“I am so proud of you.” She said, wrapping me in a tight hug. I hugged her just as tight as my sobs returned. I didn’t want to let her go.
“Mom, I don’t want to go back. I want to stay with you. I miss you so much.” I cried into her shoulder.
“I miss you so much, Ashlyn. But I’m always with you. You need to go back. There is a war coming and the king will need your help.” She said, kissing my forehead one last time.
When I opened my eyes, my mother was gone and so was Tundra. Everything was turning dark, except this light at the edge of the forest. I took off running towards the light; it was calling me, and I had a feeling it was my way out of here.
I felt like I’d been running forever and I couldn’t catch the light. The darkness kept getting closer and closer, and I was finding it harder to outrun. My legs were burning, but I had to keep going. I had to get to that light. The ground shook when I was almost there. I stumbled, but I kept going. The shaking continued, and it was getting harder to stay on my feet.
It felt like everything was against me getting to the light. Fighting my body, as it too, wanted to give up, but I couldn’t. I needed to touch that light. I needed to make my mom proud and, with one last burst of energy, I jumped, reaching my arm out. As soon as my fingers touched the light, I was sucked into a blinding light.