Page 61 of Pack Captive

Yasemin and Kadin were both more modest, lucky wolves.

There was definitely an ulterior motive to how revealing my clothes were—showing off a potential mate. They made no secret about the fact that they needed more Callers being born.

And with Kadin so young, I was the only one who could potentially fulfill that role.

I took a fortifying breath and looked up at the sky. Somewhere behind those wispy clouds and the few stars that winked at us, the moon was hiding its face.

I needed to rip enough power away from it to prove to these wolves that I could be of use to them.

In preparation for the upcoming ritual, Yasemin had filled a stone bowl with moon-blessed water. Now she moved throughout the Lunar Circle, chanting intonations as Kadin followed with the bowl.

Yasemin stopped in front of every wolf, dipping her fingers in the water and painting it over the lunar runes on their foreheads.

She'd told me this was to make them more receptive to the power I was to draw down. Like a conduit, the lingering remnants of the last moon cycle amplifying what came from the dark moon.

Once I'd imbued them with enough power, I was to run with the pack and keep the power flowing.

I tried not to think too hard about the fact that this was my only chance. Failure to draw enough power was simply not an option.

Yasemin finished the water markings with Ryden. I met Calian's dark eyes across the circle, then my gaze slid to Ryden against my will.

The memory of earlier brought a faint flush to my cheeks. I hoped if anyone noticed, they thought it was because I was scared shitless.

Ryden stared back at me as Yasemin painted over the runes on his forehead. The blue tattoos glimmered, dark against his skin.

I took my place at the top of the circle as Yasemin and Kadin brought the bowl back and refilled it with water.

A faint prickling ran over my skin, and I knew the time was almost right; although I couldn't see it, the moon was gliding into position over the sky, when it would be perfectly aligned with the lunar circle.

I just wanted to get it over with and prove that I could.

With what seemed like agonizing slowness, Kadin refilled the stone bowl to imbue the water again, and Yasemin went to the columns behind me. We each had our role to play in this ritual, taking on the aspects of maiden, mother, and crone.

As I drew the power down, Kadin would channel what she could into the water, and Yasemin would push the power down into the runes protecting Lykos, renewing its protections.

The prickling on my skin became a hum in my veins. I felt the power of the moon pulsing all the way down into my bones, shaking the marrow.

It was time.

I began the dance slowly, ensuring every movement was precise, as demanded by the dark moon.

During a full moon, a Caller could dance wildly, gripping raw power and shoving it into the warriors. Now I had to repeat the deliberate steps of earlier and pray it worked.

There was no music as I danced, but there didn't need to be.

The power itself was the music, and my relief was overshadowed by the electric feeling of it flowing into me.

I closed my eyes, pretending the other wolves weren't there, that the weight of their eyes wasn't on me. All I felt was the moon, the energy that coursed into me and the feeling of lightness as the power shone through my runes.

Spinning around the circle, I felt the first connection as I joined with wolves who weren't my original pack. It was like standing blind in a dark room and realizing without a doubt that someone else was in there with me.

My Caller marks had connected to the lunar runes of one of the Warriors. Another one soon joined it, and even with my eyes closed, I could sense the connection between us, the sparks of life on the other end of the power.

They kept flowing into my consciousness as I spun around the circle, dipping and rising, my hair flying with every step.

I knew Ryden when his marks joined with mine, and then Calian. They felt much closer than the others, almost like I could reach out and touch them through the power alone.

My feet were aching when the moon's power began to ebb, and with every step it became harder and harder to keep a grip on it.

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