Forbidden Lineage

Chapter 32

Hi guys.  Sorry for the long wait.  Thank you to all of you have gotten this far.  I really apreciate all the votes and comments from you, and also the silent readers who have managed to get this story to 70 000 reads :D  You are all awesome and I love you for it :)  Okay, this chapter has not been edited, and it isn't as long as I hoped it would be, but this story is drawing to a close...That said, read on guys.  Don't forget to vote and comment, and maybe give me your views on how you would like things to go...I'd love to hear what you have to say, so don't be shy :)   Maybe I'm too predictable??   :P   Oh, and I changed the cover....Like it?? Hate it??  Hmmm???

Kai:

They were nearing the Sacred ground in the heart of Shifter territory.  It was midnight, and the velvet sky was dotted with little sparkling stars.  With their enhanced senses, they all maneuvered easily through the trees.  This was the first time that Kai had been here, but he could see why the place was held in such high esteem.  He could feel the essence of the land building as each of them walked further on.  Locke saw him curiously looking around, and explained as they neared the clearing.

“The Witches favor this place because this is where the Spirits of the forests are always most active.” 

“Yeah, it’s powerful alright.”  Kia agreed, running his fingers over an ancient looking tree stump.  “How does it work?” 

Locke smiled gently.  His voice was proud when he answered.  “Since the Spirits are being called upon, they will continue to draw from nature to feed the strength of the Witches.  There is one other place such as this…Deep in the mountains, where the Witches can make use of the elements to their hearts desire.  This spell though, requires a different ingredient…one that only a multitude of Spirit Shifters can provide.”

Kai nodded in understanding.  From what Nik and Caleb had told him years ago, all beings capable of the shift were called Spirit Shifters.  Locke’s pack was Wolf, but there were others close by, from Bears and Foxes, to Coyote, Pumas and Lynx.  Once the Spirit of an animal chooses its other half, it prompts a shift which from that point on would bind you eternally to your chosen beast.  These grounds were overflowing with the essence of these Spirits.  Most shifts happened within a few hours of birth, when the Elder of the community would bring the newborn there to find their perfect match.  On a rare occasion the Shift would occur immediately after birth, long before they even reached Sacred ground because the pull of the Spirit would be too strong to wait.  Those Shifters would ultimately become Alpha.  Alphas were the only Shifters who bore no markings, but the tenor of their voices were different.  The rest carried the mark of their beasts close to their hearts.  There was also an instinct built into each of them, which forced them to obey their Alpha’s every command.  A Shifter’s lifespan depended on their shifting.  The more often they shifted the longer they retained their youth, much like the Witches and their casting.  Once they decided to stop, they could age naturally and leave the shift gene dormant until they perished.  Mating with humans could in some cases cause the gene to go into recession, but a few of the older Shifters had chosen to remain among their own kind and keep the races pure.  

Before he knew it, they stopped behind a huge boulder just shy of a massive clearing.  The Witches asked them to wait here while they walked ahead to where a neat pile of different sized rocks formed a semi-circle.  Further along there was another just like it.  The two half circles faced each other but didn’t touch, and in the middle of that was a patch of fresh soil which looked recently turned and soft.  It was surprisingly firm as the sisters stepped on it and took their stance in their respective places.  Beside him, Locke, Hugo, Hoyt, Nik and Ulrica made themselves inconspicuous but looked on inquisitively.  Caleb had stayed back with Yesinia.  Even though she was showing signs of a miraculous change of heart, Nik wasn’t too happy having her anywhere near the Witches, just in case she had one of her irregular mood swings.  Since Valentina and Silas were there as well, Damien opted to bring them all of them with to his place which was not too far from there.