Page 36 of An Alpha's Commitment

Irian, Isca and I wound our way through the trees to the place selected for the ceremony to take place. Xeres had chosen a clearing set three or four hundred meters deeper into the forest than the one where we gathered for our pack runs. Though smaller, it was still sizeable but with the tumble of broken down trees and overgrown bushes around it, was considerably more intimate.

The grass had been flattened in preparation, and when we stepped out of the trees, Xeres and Darius were waiting for us, standing in the middle of a complex shape that had been mapped out on the grass in a dusty substance, possibly charcoal or ash.

When we stood in the centre with them, the black lines resolved into recognizable shapes – a pentagram inside a large five-pointed star. The star was inside a circle, the points touching the circumference. A couple of meters beyond, the circle was surrounded by a larger one that ran around the perimeter of the clearing. Short, squat, white candles were placed every half meter or so around the outside circle, each sitting on a dark metal saucer.

“Brother.”

Darius greeted me with a warm embrace, then nodded to my two omegas, keeping a respectful distance from them. Xeres, hooded and somber in his black robes, stood silently beside him. I nodded respectfully at the mage. His eyes flashed deep within the shadow of the hood, but there was no acknowledgement from him other than that.

“Everything has been prepared,” Darius said. “Xeres is ready to start as soon as you are. Are you clear on what you have to do?”

“Yes. Xeres went through everything with us last week. We’re as ready as we can be.”

“If you forget anything, he’ll guide you through it.”

I looked doubtfully at the mage standing stonily at his side, barely acknowledging us.

“I hope so,” I muttered. He didn’t seem that interested, and not for the first time, I wondered if this was a task he was performing reluctantly, only doing it at all because his Alpha had requested it. How much did he actually care how successful this was?

As if sensing my doubts, Darius laid a hand on my shoulder. “Don’t worry. He’s the best there is. It will work,” he said confidently.

My eyes snapped to the mage, catching the slightest movement of his head as he acknowledged Darius’ comments. It was the first movement he’d made since our arrival.

“I’ll leave you to it,” Darius suddenly grinned toothily, a flash of his wolf in his eyes. “I really don’t need to see any of this.”

He walked away, careful not to tread on the meticulously laid out markings. Once he’d stepped outside of the circle, he turned back briefly.

“I’ll see you all at the run,” he said. “Good luck.”

Xeres muttered something that sounded like luck has nothing to do with it.

Without another word, Darius slipped between the ghostly tree trunks, as graceful as the wolf he was, and disappeared from sight.

For a long moment, we stood still and silent. When enough time had passed that Darius would surely have left the forest, Xeres glanced upwards. The blood moon hung heavy in the sky, skirting over the tops of the trees, eerie and other-wordly. He nodded to himself, seemingly satisfied.

“Take your positions in the pentagram and we will begin,” he intoned, his voice formal and monotone. Despite his solemnity and the mysterious figure he presented, hidden as he was in his hooded cloak, his voice betrayed his youthfulness.

His voice cracked slightly as he spoke. He was not as impassive as he was trying to appear. Maybe he was even a little unsure as to whether he could do this. It was a big task, even for a very experienced mage. As I understood it, the incantation was an old and unused one he’d found forgotten in the archives. And here he was, a very young mage, attempting to perform a spell that hadn’t been used in centuries. And… his hands were shaking.

He was nervous.

Strangely, rather than make me anxious about his ability to pull this off, I found the tell-tale signs comforting. He was more invested in this than he wanted to show, and that made me certain he was going to put everything he had into it. Mages were not just secretive, they were also proud. He would not want to risk his reputation by failing at this. My confidence grew with the realization.

Isca and I moved into position, facing each other. With a wave of his hand, Xeres indicated Irian should follow him as he moved towards the edge of the circle. I saw him halt Irian just inside the final circle, and he bent his head in closer. I heard the murmuring of voices as they discussed something.

None of the discussions so far had included Irian as anything other than an observer but I figured the mage knew what he was doing, and if there were any changes I needed to know about, then he'd have told me.

I kept my focus on Isca.

He stood in front of me, his bare chest pale and covered in goosebumps, from the cool night air or anticipation, I wasn’t sure.

Big brown eyes looked up into mine, soft and trusting. My omega. Soon to be my mate. My second mate. Second, but equal. My lips quirked up. I was a lucky bastard.

With a crackle and the faint acrid smell of sulphur, the candles burst to life, as Xeres performed the first step in his spell-weaving. Flames flickered gold, with the greenish tinge of magic lapping at the edges.

Isca didn’t flinch. He continued to watch me. I had memorized the steps, Xeres would only step in if it looked like I needed prompting. I could hear him murmuring his spell in the background, but my entire focus was on Isca. The air seemed to crackle around us like a living thing. I took a deep breath.

“Strip,” I instructed.

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