Page 62 of Chasing Luna

“It can’t be!” someone shouts as I regain consciousness. A warm hand steadies me as I stand up.

“What the hell just happened?” I whisper.

‘Isabela,’ an unfamiliar voice fills my head.

What the hell was that?I shake my head.

‘Isabela, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you. I’m Serafina. I live inside your body now. I’m the one you’ll change into once you turn into a wolf,the beautiful voice reveals.

What?I ask myself.

“You… you’re the reincarnation.” My grandmother looks astonished at what she’s seeing.

I’m the what?I shake my head, not feeling like myself anymore.

‘I’m your wolf form, princess of the demon wolf spirits, and the very reincarnation of the Moon Goddess,’ the voice explains.

“I think I’m losing my mind,” I tell myself.

“It feels like it, the first time it happens. But you’ll get used to it,” Gregory explains to me as he steadies my footing. “How are you feeling?” he asks, but I shake my head.

“What are they talking about?” I look at the book of spells in front of me, words from its pages jump out in a disarray of letters. “It’s… you’re the Moon Goddess. Look at your hands.” He stares at me as I look down.

Lines upon lines branch out and around my hands, glimmering with translucent light. They travel all the way from my fingertips to my arms, swirling to cover every surface of my skin. “What is all this?” I ask.

“The mark of the Goddess herself,” my grandmother chimes in and shoves Gregory out of the way. “You’re no mere royalty. You’d be revered by packs all over the world,” she states, but she doesn’t seem too happy.

I am?I query, and the voice inside my head chuckles.

‘I think we’d get along quite well,’ Serafina says.

“But I—” I start, but I’m interrupted by a loud scream that echoes throughout the woods. A fireball hurtles toward me, and I instinctively raise my arms in defense, and wait for it to hit. It never comes though, and I look over to see the fireball dissipate into thin air. Everyone looks over at me and I shrug. “Did I just do that?” I ask myself. Another shrill yell and this time, a bolt of electricity crackles in the air.

‘Oh, I know who this is now,’Serafina’s voice muses in my head. I take a deep breath and utter an incantation I’ve never said before. The bolt shoots up and away from those of us here, and immediately I know I’ve gained full power.

Just then, I hear snarls and growls surrounding the area.I’m stopping this once and for all.I lunge to grab the book by the stone slab and run, just as Katarina’s wolf form emerges from the shadows. I slam my hand on the ground and immediately the trees surrounding us are uprooted, showing the ambushers out into the open.

“Katarina,” I warn, but she stalks me continuously. I feel my eyes heat up and my hand raises itself before I can even begin to understand what I am doing. “Enough!” I yell and an invisible force shoots out from my hand. It hits Katarina, and she convulses to the ground, shaking until she turns back into a human. Those around us, wolves and humans alike, stop what they’re doing and watch as Katarina stands.

“You… how did you make me turn back?” she queries, but I stay silent.

“Don’t move,” I warn once more and she smirks.

“Like hell I won’t,” she says and lunges for me, shooting flames as she does. I dodge as much as I can, using frost to counter her attacks. “You might be powerful alone, but your pack doesn’t recognize you. Look around you, no one will save you,” she screams as she continues to attack.

I stay silent and remove the hood from my body. An incantation I let out forces another gust of wind, which targets a lot of the pack members nearby, too. “Leave before I actually kill you,” I insist once more only to be met with a manic laugh.

“You don’t have what it takes, do you? Little sister?” she taunts and charges at me with flames gathering in her hands.

I grab her hands point-blank, and the flames dissipate. I headbutt her and that seems to knock some sense into her.

“I—What?” She looks down and utters another incantation, this time filling her hands with electric charges. She smirks. “You’re still no match for me,” she remarks and I hear a symphony of growls come from behind.

‘She lured you into a trap,’ Serafina tuts in my mind.

Now would be a good time to turn,I say.

‘You can’t. You’re still too weak. Your body needs a couple of days to recuperate after absorbing the powers I have. The good thing is you still can defend yourself with spells,’she responds, and I sigh.