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Chapter One
Kara
“I’ve waited so long for this moment. I’ve waited my whole life for this moment,” Stevie moaned. I arched my neck back, feeling every muscle in his body tighten, as though all the aches of the world were contained within him. I felt the same myself, this fire that came with every kiss, this lightning that crackled within my mind, a fervent storm that rampaged within me. The lion inside me wanted to roar, but this was not a time for the lion, it was a time for the girl. Stevie’s lips left kisses against my pale skin, while his hands pawed at my clothes, eager to peel them away. I could feel the anticipation and the excitement in every breath, and it was mirrored in my own. Oh, I had been a good girl, waiting until I came of age to mate, just as my family wanted. It hadn’t always been the easiest thing to do, but I had been responsible, and now it was time to let the devil out of me. I could feel the heat rushing through me, this thrilling, mysterious, trembling sensation that left me reeling and soaring. As I closed my eyes, it felt as though there were a hundred hands upon me, his breath was a scorching wind, and my body was ready to erupt in fire.
I pressed my body close to him and ran my hands all over him, feeling the swollen arousal that I had felt many times before, only this time I actually got to see it and play with it. It felt as though I was stepping into a new world, the adult world, leaving my childhood behind. I was about to become a woman in every aspect, finally pushing away the shackles of innocence. His hands were eager, running over my breasts. This was my favorite top, but in the moment I didn’t care. He could rip it away for all I cared. He could tear me apart.
As we kissed, I rolled on top of him. I locked my arms around his head, while his hands rested against the small of my back, my raven hair falling over his fingers. I ground myself against him, eager to feel the heat and the anticipation of what was going to come next. We were done with childish games. This was the real deal, and I was ready.
Of course, Mom had been telling me that I should be careful, that I was only going to get one first time and I should make sure that it was with someone who really cherished me. Dad would have preferred me to stay a virgin for the rest of my life, I think, at least that’s the way he acted sometimes. I was done with waiting though. It already felt as though I was behind my friends. I couldn’t wait to tell them about this. Stevie was good enough. I didn’t love him or anything, but he was hot and he was a good kisser, and just by the way he looked at me, I knew he worshiped me. I giggled and lost myself in the throes of passion as I reached down and started to unbutton his pants.
And then I heard it.
It was like a thunderstorm, but instead of emerging from miles away, creeping across the horizon, it came upon us immediately. There were roars and a stampede. I rose, fear crawling through my heart. Stevie and I ran to the window and saw a pack of lions pouring through our settlement. These were mean and savage, far bigger than normal lions.
“It’s the Night Fangs. They’ve finally come,” Stevie said. I could feel the fear in his voice. It was reflected in mine.
“What? No. But there’s been no warning. I thought we had a pact?”
“The pact means nothing to them. We should have been ready for this. Fuck. We need to get out of here,” Stevie said.
“We can’t go out. We have to fight.”
“There’s no fighting them. You know what they’re like. You know what they can do. We have to go. If we run now, we can make it,” Stevie said. He was already moving towards the door. I looked out at the scene of carnage. The people of my pride shifted into lions, golden maned and proud, not that it did them any good. The Night Fangs were brutal. They killed us on sight. Some never had the chance to shift, some were killed in the middle of shifting, their bodies half human and half lion, their eyes glassy.
“You do what you want Stevie, but I need to see Mom and Dad,” I said, and pushed past him. He muttered, but he didn’t follow me. As I stepped outside, I was blasted with hot air. It was night. The air was supposed to be cool. I smelled the blood rising in the air, the blood of my pride. Anger was a tight ball inside my chest. Tonight of all nights. Couldn’t they have waited until I had fucked Stevie?
I clenched my jaw and kept low. I ducked in between our buildings. I could hear the sickening sound of fighting, of teeth sinking into flesh, of dying wails, the thunder of bodies collapsing to the ground, never taking a breath again. I had my whole life ahead of me. It wasn’t supposed to end in some onslaught by a rival pride.
I kept to the shadows and ran home pushing through the door. Mom and Dad were there. They rushed towards me and embraced me.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“You need to go, Kara,” Dad said.
“What? No. I need to stay and fight. We’re all needed.”
“You need to go. This pride is finished. We can’t stand against the Night Fangs. The only thing we can do is buy you time to leave. It’s the same for all the young ones. You need to run and get as far away from here as possible. Begin a new life, and hide. It would be best if you didn’t turn into lions at all,” he said.
I didn’t understand. Not shift into a lion? I had so many questions, so many ways to protest, but Mom and Dad weren’t hearing it. Mom had packed me a bag and shoved it in my arms, and then Dad dragged me to the door. He pointed to a far star and told me to run towards it and not stop no matter what. Dad had always been a strong man. I had never seen him afraid before, but now I could hear the crack of emotion in his voice, and I could see his eyes turn to liquid. Mom’s cheeks glistened with tears. She kissed me on the forehead and then turned away from me.
“Mom… Dad…” I said weakly.
“Go!” Dad said. At that point they twisted around, hearing a lion approaching. They hissed at me. I had never seen them so afraid. It wasn’t even something I thought they were capable of. They pushed me away, practically forcing me to run as they turned and fought.
But what of me?
I felt like a coward as I ran. I felt like I should have stayed with them and fought alongside them, but they had ordered me away, and I was bound to obey my parents. I hadn’t made a habit of following the rules before, but the look in their eyes… they just wanted me to survive.
My heart burned brightly. It had burned with passion with Stevie, but now it was a rampant ball of anger. All I wanted was to rush into battle and fight the enemy, but what good would that have done? I would have been killed and tossed aside with them. Their wish was for me to run, to survive, so as much as it hurt me to leave them like that, to abandon my pride, I did as they asked, and I would carry the pain of this with me because they were no longer able to, and I would just pray that soon we would be reunited. I had to believe they could defeat the Night Fangs, even if it was hard to do so.
I turned away, trying to push aside the sounds of slaughter. I shifted as I broke into a sprint. The arcane magic took hold of me, and my body transformed, morphing into the lioness that I truly was inside. In this form, my senses were more acute and I was more attuned to the battle raging behind me. My paws crashed against the ground as I ran, but then I noticed that two lions from the Night Fang pride had noticed and were chasing after me. I had no idea what had happened to Stevie or any of the others. All I knew was that my pride, my home, had been destroyed, and all the ground would be bathed in blood.
And if I wasn’t careful, my blood would be spilled too.
My lungs burned and my muscles screamed in agony as I pushed myself to my limits. I cursed myself for not training as hard as Dad wanted, for the Night Fangs were gaining on me. I could feel the tremors of their mighty paws, an ominous pounding that shook the world beneath me. Every breath was painful. I locked my gaze onto the star that Dad had pointed out, but it never got any closer. I stumbled and almost lost my footing. Branches whipped my skin. I barely had time to think of anything.
I dared to look over my shoulder and then I saw them, close enough that I could make out the markings on their faces. Their lips glowed red, smeared with the blood of my lions, eager to taste more. I was already beginning to falter. I wasn’t going to be able to make it.
