SECRETS AND SHADOWS

The Beginning Of The Beginning

In the heart of Ancient America, in the age of dragons, witches, warlords, vampires and werewolves, and every soul-sucking beast imaginable, lay a quiet town called Ava. With its unfriendly terrain, very few creatures ever found it, and even fewer had the heart to settle in it. Of these few were the Yoma and Yitta werewolf clans, who would go ahead to call this small slice of land home for centuries.

Ava held an aura of warmth but also told tales of hidden, deeper shadows and secrets. It was a feeling that one couldn't shake off and to put words to their thoughts, most foreigners and one-time visitors often attributed it to the tragic incident that had happened a couple of years ago.

The town had tall, looming, and jagged mountains. This nature's monstrosity tends to cast a shadow on everything in this path.

'It's not an easy climb but if you get through it, It's worth it.'

'Nah, I don't want to lose my teeth trying'

It's fun, honestly, just have them strap you up nice and tight.'

'I bet it is, but I'm good. Thanks'

The two friends had visited Ava during the summer to experience its famous earthy aura and warmth. While one of them opened himself up to the full experiences, the other one was scared. It was with good reason.

Ava was very beautiful; so soft, yet so unforgiving.

Our forefathers had never needed an Ultima in their time, but we must shift and shape ourselves, first to protect our homes and our lands, to fight for everything and everyone that we love, and to secure the future of our pups…

The words of Pa Seon, Ava's first Ultima Alpha still filled me with awe. I had just completed yet another book on the history of Ava and it was just breathtaking.

'….Nina, can you answer the question for the class?', a voice said sternly, forcing me out of my reverie.

[Gulp]

'I'm sorry, Miss. I didn't quite catch that', I said automatically in the shaky voice of a guilty person, as Miss Dinah's face came into focus.

The range of emotions that displayed across her face in quick succession was: confusion, anger then quiet resolution.

'Airhead!', someone shouted from the back, then it was followed by a loud round of laughter.

I had forgotten to continue listening in English class.

'Nina, I'm sure that whatever you are thinking about is important, but this is important too, so focus'

She looked at me like she would have loved to say more but she changed at the last minute and asked another eager classmate of mine.

I could hear the popular girls snickering at the back of the class and my heart started to race, as the stain of embarrassment burned my cheeks a bright red. It was cold but my palms became very sweaty, so much so that I had to wipe them down on my brown suede skirt.

'I've done it again!', I said under my breath, as the knot in my throat became tighter and tighter but it wouldn't go down no matter how much I swallowed.

I was about to cry when I suddenly felt the intense focus of a pair of eyes fixed on me from the far right corner of the class. It was Chris'. One look into those moss-green eyes of his and my excessive sweating stopped. They trying to tell me to remain calm.

I blinked twice and swallowed forcefully to push down the sobs that had already gathered in my throat. It took a while but I managed to bring my attention back to the class, listening to Miss Dinah's even tone, her words falling out as one long drone, as she delivered her lesson on diphthongs.

'I'm telling you, those girls hate me, Chris. I really think they do!', I insisted, breathlessly as we walked home together at the close of the day.

'You're overthinking it, Nina', Chris laughed finally. 'Teenage girls are sometimes… unnecessarily mean like those girls or are easily distracted and fussy, like you'.

He didn’t mean any harm, I knew that, but it didn’t stop his words from biting either

'Oh yeah, like you would know', I said, already pouting. 'We are 15 years old, we are both teenagers, remember, our birthday is next week.'

'So what were you reading that had you so engrossed?', he asked soothingly. We both knew that he had crossed a line, and he was trying to make amends for it.

At this, my eyes lit up.

'So you know how Ava is made up of two wolf clans, the Yoma and Yitta clans?', I asked.

'Ok…?'

'I was reading Pa Seon's account of how the Ultima Alpha position came about', I said triumphantly. 'It was instated to ward off other wolf packs that might try to dominate and take over Ava'

'You sound so sure, don't you?', Chris said, with a glint in his eyes.

'Well, am I not…?', I asked, my voice trailing off mid-sentence.

'No, it tracks', he said. He was smiling from ear to ear now. 'After the great earthquake, the Yoma pack migrated to the west end of the river, while the Yitta clan remained in the east. Something had to be done to ensure that we're not perceived as a weak pack, so you're right.'

'You should speak more confidently. It makes you more beautiful, he finally added.

When I looked up at him, he had a knowing look in his intoxicating, wild eyes; a sharp contrast to the warm playful smile that played across his luscious lips. He didn't say anything and he didn't have to because I would have agreed to everything and anything.

As if on cue, he reached out for me with his right hand without another word. As soon as I took his hand, he interlocked our fingers and put both of our hands in the right pocket of his large leather winter jacket, which was twice my size.

He tore his eyes away from mine and continued walking, while I followed closely beside him. We continued the rest of the way in satisfied silence racing heartbeats and shared body heat.