Chapter 1
Summer's Janica's most favorite season. It glows up kindling light on her eyes looking at roses of different colors, breezing fresh wind blowing her veranda, dancing leaves of trees, chirping birds like chimes whispering harmonious peaceful ambiance and greeny leafy forest at sight. "
"Hey gorgeous, how are you?" Janica was stunned with her dad's compliment. "Good morning papa!",she ran to him and kissed him, "arg!" What's that smell papa? she said.
"You stink! Ew!" She faced him as if has really smelled something stinky on him.
"Oh! I just had my shower this morning , are you aware of that?" her dad seemed disgusted in her so called compliment, but laughed later.
"Hahaha," she laughed harder than him.
"Good morning my king,my princess!", Cassia's angelic voice from the stair.
"Good morning, our queen!" their chorus reply, and Janica ran towards her queen mother and gave her hug and kisses.
"I love you mama"she said, her twinkling eyes smiled and said"I love you more, and I'm grateful for having you in our lives". Delighted with her comforting words, she said with teary eyes "I also do mama, thank you and I love you."
Together they shared breakfast, that's how they usually start their days, before getting too busy with different responsibilities. At 20, Janica was raised independent and strong as she should be . Her father Dark Lucian Romeo Howell, the Alpha of Dark Pthalo Shadows of the Orient is the best among the other packs of the orient. He was able to restore the realm of supernatural creatures from extinction and division during the pack wars in 20th century .
His mate, Janica's mother Cassia was a full-blooded human, innocent of the existence of Dark Lucian Romeo's supernatural world . She bore Janica, but her human body couldn't bear the risk of pregnancy of a soon-to-be Alpha of the pack, she ended up being transformed as a were-woman through rituals just be able to bear the extraordinary pregnancy.
Janica's nascence was in summer solstice in her 12th birthday, enabling her first exposure to the supernatural world of werewolves where she was introduced to other fellow young werewolves of the clan, witnessing the shifts of the other older wolves, fascinated by the shifts she murmured, "how can I be as strong as them mama?" her eyes never left Delta Arth's while transforming, his shifting made him greatly strong beast with white furs all over his body, she even can her his bones cracking while ripping out his clothes, ready to smash fleshes of enemies.
"Your uncle Delta Arth's gonna be your mentor soon princess" her mother told her that one day she shall be undergoing tough trainings to ensure her safety and protection ,not knowing what fate drawn upon the days ahead.
At a swinging chair, she looked around their training camp where werewolves of her age currently undergoing enhancements mentored by Deltas, she closely took a grasp on someone, like the other have moved intensive body crunching punches and strokes, his face hardly filled with sweat and oil through exposure to heat while on deck.
Mama, who's that one with blue shirt? she asked, "He's Gabriel, Beta Gregory's son."He's quite good for a 16 huh!" her mother praised the guy she noticed, "good-looking and attractive young guy", she added. They both laughed hard.
The guy, turned his face to them and bowed. Only then she noticed his charming blue eyes, flowy hair filled with sweat, and parted lips while catching breath, just so she realized his ability in hearing voices from afar, hey he could even hear their conversation.
Her face turned hot and red,her heartbeat faster, that he couldn't contain Gabriel's stare, she turned her sight to the right and saw he mother was in utmost kilig????if she only knew, she could have brought with her pocket mirror and shades to hide her eyes.
Smiled of the thought, she took quick at her watch as if wondering time. "Oh!, it's dinnertime now, I'm starving." her half lie, and smiled, "let's go ma!".
"Sure, let's go!" her mother.
Before leaving, she turned her face to Gabriel's direction, only to see him seemed like he's also waiting for her next glance, he waved his hand. Her face lift up and smiled back, waved her hand too in response before she turned he back on him with smiles on her lips.
Being a female young werewolf, Janica struggled different facets of judgement and discrimination, her weak, sickly and nerdy appearance of real distortion of how female half-human werewolf as she is, could ever weakly lead the pack. Sometimes, she found herself toggled between fortune and misfortune of bearing the heirship of the alpha.
Days flew fast Janica turned 20, that she was sent for a confidential physical training for years, developing her werewolf endurance and leadership to lead the pack whenever circumstances requires it. It was her father's plan not to disclose her engagement to trainings as she has been prim and proper, princess-like attitude which caused her being anticipated as a weak alpha in the future.
Her father's strength and immortality could surpass fights and wars but with growing possibilities of clashes, alliances of packs in the other parts of the orient, they agreed to work hard to protect the pack.
"Heyaah!"she kicked her mentor Delta Arthur, his father's adoptive sibling.
"Ouch! That was hard and fast Lyca, you're getting tougher everyday huh!" he said while fixing his face and neck where Janica hit him hard.
"I think you can rest for now, we've been punching ,kicking and chasing wild beasts all day!", still amazed of her hard punches and strong kicks.
"It's alright tito Arth,I can still run five hundred miles in a half." boastful but true, the Delta smiled that the lady now is now coming to turn herself a strongest, fastest wild ferocious beast in an instant.
"Well, I'm just thinking how strong could you be after your first shapeshift? I think you can even beat the Alpha now". He stared Janica unbelievably.
"I don't even think of that, what matters to me is to help my father watching over the Pthalo Shadows of the Orient. I must defend it, I must protect our tribe's safety against exoticizing packs of the West ."said Janica to Arth.
"But, honestly I really want to try the shift, so I tried harder each day,but it seemed a lot harder to bring out my wolf."
He tapped her shoulder, "you surely do not know how proud I am of how tough you have become, it's the moon goddess' plan that a female alpha will soon lead Dark Pthalo Shadows, soon your wolf Alundra will come out, just wait and trust the process".
She looked at him "I'm getting worried that it'll not come out, I'm a half-human in case you forgot, tito ,but that's what you see, I'm kinda glad of having your guidance throughout. " she smiled at him.
One day came and the Second Rite was about to begin, but Janica got anxiously denied of the proficiency of smelling just as how usual 20 year-old werewolves perceive, she's strong and started manifesting fast healing, somehow the smelling power could add her confidence to realize the "Alpha-destiny".
She can't smell any of the wolves around, can barely hear sound only at sometimes.As expected,some of pack got disappointed upon her incapability.
Until that dark night of nightmare burnt her life, her destiny unprecedented..