”And I hope it is smooth and Painless!”

(Author’s Point of View.)

Shainu wanted to ask what the matter was but seeing how the girl stared murderously at a certain male, who had his eyes shut and groaning in pleasure as a female relentlessly slurped on his cock, her eyebrows furrowed. For a certain, she could tell the young girl was untouched. “Could it be that she fancies the male and is jealous to see this?” She pondered. “Avena!” Shainu called. “Why do you feel jealous seeing him with another woman?”

The girl swallowed. Her anger blazing inside her. “I don’t know why, but I just don’t want to see this! I don’t want to see his face like that!”

“Then look away child…”, Shainu said helplessly. Everyone had gone out of their minds with an instantiable lust. She was glad that all the wolves that were gathered today, both shifted and the two unshifted girls who are Amelia’s maids, were all above sixteen years old and hence, considered adults. Furthermore, even though the wolves are known to not bother about age because so long you had your first shift, you were considered ripe. However, Reagan had strictly warned that no virgins were allowed on this occasion. The only exceptions were Olivia and Avena. Otherwise, she was not sure how much protecting she would have had to undertake. Shainu thought to herself.

About three hours later…

It was finally midnight. Noticing how the battle was nowhere near to an end, Sharma Emmanuel had no choice but to go ahead with performing the shifting rites because any further delay would cause the youngsters an agonizing pain.

With that, Shainu and the girls all headed in the direction the unshifted wolves were assembled.

They arrived momentarily at the field where a hand full of people were gathered, which was a fifteen minutes’ walk from the temple.

Standing up at the podium, Sharma Emmanuel looked up to the distinct moon for an endless second. After he was done gazing at the moon, his focus then returned to the eagerly waiting juveniles that couldn’t wait to have their first shifts.

Stepping down from the podium towards the youngsters, “Today, is a special day in our kingdom. Today, isn’t just the day you youngsters get to take your forms for the first time, but also the day we officially welcomed our queen home.” Sharma Emmanuel spoke as he stood in front of the enthusiastic crowd.

Getting to the other end of the front line, his right hand reached out to the forehead of the first person in that row. Shifting to the next one, he did the same thing. “O mater misericors! Dea animae nostrae, ad te voco! Per hos catulos, sit lux vestra super terram nostrum.” His lips moved frantically as he went from one line to the other until he reached the last person then stopped. “May the moon give you the strength to oversee your first shift. Through you, may wonderful things befall our lands.”

“And I hope it is smooth and painless.” Their King’s unexpected voice took the people by surprise as they whipped their heads in his direction.

Reagan spoke softly striding towards the gatherings with only his pants on. His eyes peering down at the little woman in his arms as her chest rose and fell rapidly, with white and a tinge of black smoke leaking from her, and her canines appearing out of her mouth.

Following behind him, were the ones that had finally detached themselves from their inseparable battle as they came back to their senses. They all had blankets over their shoulders to cover their naked bodies, since all the clothes they came to the ceremony with had been ripped into shreds. They had never experienced such a thing before. It was soul incarcerating.

Noticing how Amelia was acting restless in the King’s arms, Dorothy and Veronica who had stayed with the unshifted ones, rushed forward. “Your Majesty! What is happening with her?” They asked keeping their distance from the iciness that was emitting from Amelia. As though someone had opened a freezer, the whole place suddenly felt cold.

“She is shifting!” Reagan replied calmly placing Amelia down on the ground, with the blanket he had swaddled her in, secured around her chest.

“Oh, bless the goddess!” Veronica muttered tearfully. “At last, she finally gets to shift. Her long-awaited dream has at long last come through.’

“Indeed!” Reagan’s mind was in a conflict right now. On one hand, he was super thrilled that his little woman would finally become a complete she-wolf as she has always wanted. However, he was not sure of what to make out of the dark smoke that was leaking from her. As they have now fully imprinted on each other, thus, he had seen and heard everything in her memories. Starting with her dreams, then to Mayalok, and down to having a talk earlier with Artemis.

“Crack…” The cracking of Amelia’s bones pulled Reagan out of his thoughts.

“Fuck… It hurts.” Amelia cried out. And soon, the whole field resounded in more screams and cracking of bones as the unshifted wolves began to take their forms for the first time.

After an agonising second passed, everyone else stopped screaming except Amelia. They were still shifting, yet they suddenly no longer felt any pain.

Grasping the profundity of what she was doing, Reagan pinched the bridge of his nose as he paced back and forth in seething. She was taking all their pains in her. No, it wasn’t her, but her damn darkness. They enjoyed her pain while she suffered. His anger was rising at every passing second, feeling her anguish. “Stop it!” He growled.

“It-s no…t me… Goddesssss…”, Amelia shrieked as her finger turned claws.

“I said stop it!” Reagan roared, his mixture of now green, golden and red orbs, were blazing as though they were bulbs in his eyes.

Feeling his sudden outburst, all the other wolves scrambled further away from him, and a high pitch whimper left Amelia’s throat as his suppressing aura washed over her.

“Forgive me, love. It had to be done…” Reagan uttered dolefully. “I might be wrong, but you must keep in mind that, whatever you shift as today, is what you will remain. So, I am imploring you, no matter how tempting it feels, do not give in to your darkness.”

Amelia could vaguely make out what his words meant. Her bones were still cracking as she continued to shift into her wolf form. Although it wasn’t painful anymore since Reagan’s command had managed to outdo her pain sucking darkness. Yet, her furs and paws were still coming out black. And her eyes gradually turning black as well. Amelia could feel in her bones that this time, whatever force was urging her to choose the wrong side, wasn’t the Phantoms. Because those evil things hadn’t intentionally done more than just devouring all the pain they could grasp as that fuels them. However, something else was compelling her to give in.