Untouchable

Chapter 25

Chapter 25 The Future As long as I am breathing, in my eyes, I am just beginning."- Criss Jami, Killosophy Kiya Five Years Later Life was good. Five years ago, I never thought I'd be in the position I am now, loving life. It was a dream I believed I could never reach.

But I did.

After my adoption, I changed my name. With the desire to keep my past in the past, I felt it was necessary to abandon the name Halima Lane, for that identity held too much pain for me. Adopting the surname of my parents, my name was now Kiya Guerrero, meaning 'Righteous Warrior'.

I have a wonderful family that treats me well and sees the best in me. I have an amazing group of friends and my pack had been nothing short of supportive. Every single person I hold close to my heart pushed me to do my best. I credit them for helping to cultivate me into the strong woman I am today.

I am a rising Junior pursuing my major in Child and Adolescent Development at San José State University. College was one hell of a trip but being surrounded by many people was a world I've come to appreciate.

As for r my position in the pack, I was now a Delta, a rank reserved for the top five highly skilled warriors of the pack, each in charge of specific training specialties. I was the adopted daughter in the Alpha family, but I wanted to work for the things 1 want. The desire to be a strong werewolf stuck with me since my bonding to the pack. I refuse to be weak and spoiled. I wanted to earn my keep and I wanted to help defend the pack from the plethoric threats we've received over the years, including what I used to be, rogues.

Under Gamma All's leadership and the oh-so flamboyant Delta Galen's training regimen, I crawled up the ranks within two years. I fought hard and trained harder in the training specialties which included, but were not limited to hand-to-hand combat, weapon warfare, and wolf battle. Garnet Moon cultivates warrior wolves for a good reason, and I wear my title with pride and honor. I specialize in hand- to-hand combat.

Alpha Anthony and Luna Alesia rule over Garnet Moon, successfully honoring the legacies of the Alphas and Lunas before them. Now a married couple, they have a two-year-old daughter, Ximena.

My niece was cute as a button, minus the constant drooling she does. I was still waiting for the day she could finally pronounce "Auntie", or Tia in Spanish. But for now, I was all right with the drooling and baby babble. At least I knew she is happy to see me when she scampers my way. Anthony was strict and domineering with his members, yet a select few see the softer side of him. Alesia was still a kick-ass Luna with power coursing through her veins, but she was an absolute mushy mess with her husband and daughter.

My parents have been taking advantage of their retirement. Since the pack establishments generate enough money, they planned an overseas vacation twice a year together. They have been to every continent at least once, except Antarctica. Once, they took me with them on a trip to Paris, France. I've obviously never been, but I immediately fell in love with the French culture.

I have so many photos saved from that trip and gained ten pounds from croissants alone. I couldn't help it; they were full of buttery goodness!

As for Lyria, my big sister, she found her mate. He was Alpha Dimitri from the Thunder Moon pack in Southern California and she was living there as their Luna. I miss her terribly, but I knew she is doing well. I Charter 25 The Future might expect another niece or a nephew soon!

Dwayne and Jacqueline were still at each other's throats, as expected with twins. Both had found their mates. around the same time, a phenomenon no one expected. Dwayne's mate was Olivia, a she-wolf from one of our allied packs, Twilight Dusk. As the daughter of a warrior, she was more than ecstatic to mate with Dwayne, considering they mated the first night he was there. It wasn't long until she moved to our pack.

Jaqueline's mate was Abigail, who she met in one of her college classes. She was a human, an international student from Nigeria, and loves Jackie with every fiber of her being. They graduated together last year, and Abi moved into the territory shortly after. It took her parents a while to realize that their daughter was gay and mated to a werewolf, but they gave their blessings. Abigail was one of the few humans in our warrior army, trained under both Delta Galen and Delta Darien.

I also got closer with Sapphire, the she-wolf I met five years ago during the passage ceremony. Born into the pack, she is a year older than me at twenty- three. She was smart. We go to university together, although she is a senior, she was already in college by the time I completed my accelerated high school courses online.

As a Chemistry major, I often see her making compounds and other unique things when motivated by her curiosity, she was responsible for developing the Anti-Spray, which helps disguise our scents whenever warriors and Deltas were deployed for missions. I wouldn't say she was nerdy, but her intelligence isn't to be underestimated.

As for me? Besides being a Delta, I've recovered mostly from my past. Why mostly? Well, there were some days it liked to creep up on me and ruin my day. I still see Mayra, although my sessions were now once every other week. I decided to not go on medication for my PTSD and depression, but it might change in the distant future.

My connection with Artemis was as strong as it has ever been, and we're both living the good life without mates. However, I was in a brief relationship with Gamma Ali until we decided it would be best if we stayed as friends. He found his mate, Zainab. I was thrilled for him and they look cute together.

While my connection to my wolf was strong, so was the connection to my goddess. Three years ago, however, I discovered that I had added perks alongside being Selene's avatar on Earth. Training to be a Delta was tough, but on one particular day, it was the hardest session I've ever endured. Under the scorching rays of the sun-drenched in sweat, I've had moments where I wanted to give up, that I wasn't meant to be a strong wolf. Self-doubt gnawed at me and wouldn't stop until I surrendered to its frothy jaws.

A male warrior was giving me a tough time, flinging taunts and insults whenever I landed hard on the grass. Normally, the banter was all in playful fun, but the intent behind his words was malicious. His ego was inflated, and he made sure to remind me with every kick and punch he threw. Coming from a background where I was constantly told I was worthless made the impact of his insults reach my heart. For a moment, I almost reverted back as the pitiful, beaten-up slave.

But something happened.

An unknown power awakened inside of me, flooding my veins with vivacious energy threatening to burst from underneath my skin. I thought it was my confidence shining through, but the sensation took on a supernatural feel. Power burst from me, shining brilliantly whilst I was behind its moon-colored shield. The sun and moon were rivals, but the moonlight-like power outshone the berating sunlight.

And it blinded the foolish werewolf. Accidently. It was then, later that evening when I went to sleep did Selene reached for me and told me what that incident meant. It turns out that I have supernatural powers and Chapter 25 The Future abilities related to the moon, including the manipulation of moon energy. Not only am I the rarest wolf in existence, but I also have superpowers. According to Selene, many creatures on earth serve as avatars for a specific god or goddess, and one benefit of that was sharing their powers over what they command. The new revelation terrified me at first because it's a foreign phenomenon I didn't think was possible, but it was all smoothened out when I met Phoebe.Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.

Phoebe is a witch who lives in Garnet Moon and is the avatar of Hekate, the Goddess of Magic. Mysterious, but quizzical and intelligent, the woman swooped in and taught me all I needed to know about avatar information and the management of my powers. She became my personal trainer. With her help, I was trained in controlling my newfound abilities and trained in the art of moon magic.

Dangling around my neck is an upright crescent moon necklace carved out of the selenite crystal, a gift from her. It had helped me keep my abilities under control as a physical barrier, so they don't go haywire with my fluctuating emotions. I haven't fully mastered my abilities, so they were more on the unstable side. With Phoebe's guidance and wisdom, she had helped curb that worry.

But, having a lot of power at my disposal is frightening. I hope that one day, I'll have total control over them without hurting anyone.

Today was a sunny day on New Brighton State Beach, College kids and teens alike run toward the cold ocean with surfboards or with their friends, basking in on this glorious day. The powdery sand twinkles underneath the sun and the water glitters with magnificence. I walk along the beach dunes with Sapphire at my side, both of us in bikinis with wraps around our waists with our towels underneath our arms. Sapphire in blue and I in striped white, our pack marks fully exposed. It's funny that the humans believe it's just a normal tattoo, but the other wolves at our university knew better.

Ignoring the sharp whistles and woos from both human men and werewolves around us, we found a decent spot to lay our towels down to relax. Children shrieked in excitement all around us, building sandcastles or catapulting themselves in the cool sea.

"It's a gorgeous day, isn't it?" I ask Sapphire in awe, laying on my stomach. The cool breeze licked at my skin, gently cooling my furnace-like body down. I heard a soft shuffle beside me, I turned my head to see Sapphire resting on her elbows.

"Yeah, it is. It's nice." The blond replied without enthusiasm, eyes cast on the glittering sand. Her blue eyes had that far-away look that meant she was in deep thought about something. Smiling, I poked her shoulder.

"We're out of school for the summer. It's a joyous occasion! No final exams, no irritating professors, not deadlines..." I retorted. Sapphire will graduate next semester while I have a couple more years left to go.

"Yeah I know, but that's not what I meant." She whispered, tossing me a knowing look.

Propping myself on my elbows, I gently smile and pat her shoulder. "Are you still thinking about Emil?" Emil was a human man Sapphire had a crush on. They met during one of her analytical chemistry classes, and she fell instantly head-over- heels. Given that she was an unmated female, I understand her disappointment when she revealed to me that Emil was traveling the world after graduation. He graduated this semester.

A deep part of me wishes they could be mates, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

Chapter 25 The Future

"He is the envy of all recent graduates, I bet," I joked, adding a chuckle. "Not everyone has the opportunity to travel the world after graduation."

"The entire summer is such a long time. I won't be able to see or talk to him for four months." She whined.

"You'll survive. Besides, you have a mate out there, somewhere. Once you find him, Emil would be nothing but old news."

She rolled her eyes, her hand searching for her phone in her purse. "You're not good at this love sympathy thing, are you?"

"Not at all, but I try my best."

Sapphire quirked an eyebrow as she glanced at her phone screen. "Did you pack your things before we came.

here?"

"I did." I turned myself on my rear end and sat up. Sapphire and I rented an apartment together near campus, paid for by Anthony. We were due to go back home for the summer. "Why? Are Darien and Galen here to pick us up?"

"Darien texted me to say they are about an hour away," Sapphire muttered, squinting at her phone. They're also bringing food."

"Sweet!" I hop on the soles of my feet, gently kicking up s sand.

"I'll race you to the waves!" In a flash, Sapphire bolted towards the water. "Hey! No fair!" I screamed;

I Funning after her. We both dove deep into the water and made fools of ourselves for a good half hour.

our After the beach, we took a taxi back to our apartment. Our clothes and other items were packed neatly in o multiple suitcases, ready to be transported back to pack territory. Living in an apartment with your best friend is great, but I miss home. I couldn't wait to see baby Ximena again and spend the entire summer with her.

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