† Coral †

They said this was magic, but this was not freaking magic. It was a literal sledgehammer against my spine.

My knees gave out and my joints dislocated. Bright flashes of light turned to black spots in my field of vision as my body resisted the unnatural form it wanted to take. A wordless scream caught in my throat, raw and full of pain.

Pain.

There was so much pain.

My eyes watered and I tried to scream again. Every. Single. Bone. In. My. Body. Broke.

I wanted Sage.

I wanted this to stop.

But it was too late for that.

“Don’t fight it,” Kera told me gently. “You have to let her win.” I didn’t even know who she was.

This foreign entity was so distant that I could have kept imagining she never existed until now when I couldn’t anymore. The wolf was the part of me that had changed my whole life and I knew I had to let her out.

But it really hurt.

It hurt so damn bad.

The plates in my neck snapped as it elongated. The beds of my nails were torn out and claws grew in their place. I screamed again, full of

righteous fury for the pain I had to endure.

The sound that came from my lips wasn’t me.

It was a howl so full of anguish that my heart broke for the wolf who knew suffering like this.

“You did it.” Kera’s voice was in my mind as clear as my own thoughts. “And you’re a part of the pack now. Your wolf is beautiful, babe.”

Aaaa. A second voice entered the chat that was hoarse and broken as if it’d never been used.

I opened my eyes, panting, and tried to make sure I was still alive. The world was in shades of muted colors, grays and yellows and white. I stared down at two massive white paws on the ground where my hands should have been.

Hot damn. I was a freaking wolf.

A snarl snapped me from my elation and I looked around for the angry wolf. The pain of hunger rumbled through my core, but I was still stuffed from the dinner Sage made earlier today.

Appphhh. The pain-stricken note sounded again in my head. Wait. Our head?

Was my wolf speaking to me?

Oh, right. Kera said this would happen. It was time to meet my wolf. Introductions were important so I took a steadying breath before extending a metaphorical hand now that the pain had eased.

Hey there…um…wolf of mine. I’m sorry it took so long for us to

meet.

A dangerous snarl filled my mind and slashed straight through my

heart. Mental images flooded my brain of the paintball tournaments and that jerk Mal who led my biggest opponent’s team. It wasn’t her face that the

image focused on though, it was the adrenaline that pumped through my veins as I anticipated an attack.

Then there was more.

Video clips of war and rage, enemy pilots shooting nations down.

Bombs exploded. I knew the clips even though I didn’t remember watching them.

Excuse me? I started to panic, wanting to turn around and find Kera or Sage or even Maddock at this point. But this new massive jaw of mine wouldn’t budge.

“Kera!” I cried out. If her voice had been in my head, then maybe she could hear mine. “Something is wrong. It’s like my wolf thinks I’m her enemy.”

The familiar wolf eyes came into my line of sight and set me at ease.

My wolf seemed to recognize Kera too because she relaxed a bit.

“Talk to her,” Kera said.

“I’m trying, but she doesn’t understand.”

This was bad.

I thought we were going to be this majestic team and here I was speaking to a wall that made creaking sounds and sent me images of my life that were tainted with hate.

Kera sat her wolf butt on the ground and cocked her head to the side. “Try again.”

Okay. I focused on calming my beast with waves of love and light and whatever other hippy bullshit I could think of.

I’ve missed you since before I knew you existed. It’s nice to meet you, pretty girl.

My wolf stilled with her ears perking up and I hoped I was getting through to her.

It’s okay to be angry. We were cooped up for so long, but I promise you’ll never be locked away again. I’ll protect you. You are safe. I’m so

happy that you’re free.

My wolf snorted as she sniffed the air and then bared her teeth at the woods with a menacing growl. The same images came again, pummeling my mind on hyper speed, and the deep hunger feeling made my soul ache with a primal need to hunt.

I tried to slow it down and process her meaning. When it dawned on me, it was too late.

“Kera!” I screamed as my wolf took control and sprinted for the trees. “Something is wrong. I’m pretty sure this girl is feral. And she thinks something dangerous is coming.”