A Gift from the Goddess
Chapter 36

Chapter Thirty-Six Alpha Tytus smiled between Alexander and I, clearly eager for whatever wasabout to ensue. In response, I couldn't help but squirm a little under his gaze.

Naturally, my father had to leave me to sit by Tytus given his rank. I watched him go and tried to notoutwardly express just how nervous I was about him leaving me. But he needed to show that he wasunbiased in this decision, and I needed to show that I didn't require my father to fight my battles forme.

"Okay, Aria,” Tytus started. “Why don't you begin by telling us why you're here today?”

It was clear by those selected to attend that they all knew already what I was about to say, and yethe wanted to hear it from me anyway. Once again, I found myself having to tread carefully, stuck inthe game I knew Tytus was laying out for me. I knew he wanted me to become Luna but I didn'tknow yet what he thought of my desire to be Beta. Would it be enough for him to feel I wascontained and not a threat? Or did he see through my plan to make myself immune, trapping hisson should he ever cross me? “Alpha, I'm here today to appeal a process that has for too long beenan outdated tradition of our kind,” I spoke out confidently. I knew if he sensed any weakness in methat it would be game over. “I am here today to request you hear out my petition to succeed myfather in his role as Beta when the time comes.”

There was a small murmur amongst the Elders but it wasn't their whispers that worried me; it wasthe feeling of a cold stare on me, something I was too familiar with. I spared a glance to the Alpha’sright for only a moment and caught Aleric's eye. As I'd thought, he wasn't happy with myannouncement and was staring daggers at me.

My natural instinct was to shy away and submit to his icy gaze, but I held my own, only breaking eyecontact to return my attention to the Alpha.

“Mmm... definitely an intriguing prospect coming from you, young Aria,” he mused. “AndAlexander? What say you about all of this?"

“My son is the most qualified person in this pack to succeed my older brother upon his retirement,”my Uncle William replied.

"I believe I was asking Alexander, not you, William."

Tytus stared down sharply at my uncle enough to make him bow his head apologetically. Theawkward silence that fell was only broken moments later by Alexander clearing his throat, clearlynervous over how badly this had already started.

"Alpha, it would be my greatest honour to support our pack by becoming Beta one day. I am at theservice of you, Aleric and our fellow pack members.” Tytus inhaled deeply in thought having listenedto the replies on both sides. His eyes then turned back to me.

“Aria, tell me something...” he said, reclining into his chair. “The last time we spoke you mentionedhaving no desire for the Luna position... or any other role of substantial authority

for that matter. What has finally changed your mind?”

I looked to my father and saw him nod at me in encouragement. “...My father has, Alpha,” I saidafter a pause in thought. “He has shown me the kind of strength I am capable of possessing andhow my body doesn't need to define who I am allowed to become.”

It wasn't a lie but it wasn't the entire truth. If it hadn't been for my father accepting who I was, who Iam, and who I could be, there would have been no possible way I would be standing here nowbefore Tytus. His training over this last month had proven to me that I was capable o f changingwho I was if I worked hard enough. That there was no reason to let others choose m y fate for me;not even a Goddess. “I am the only direct descendant of the house of Chrysalis,” I continued. “Asyou know, we have been the only family for hundreds of generations now to produce Betas timeand time again. Our family’s wits and strength have guaranteed our position, never failing in anychallenge issued for our rank. It is our family’s right to hand over this title to the next in line.”“Ridiculous!” Uncle William called out. “By your logic then, there should be no issue if my son takesover. We are your family too, after all.”

“Your son is not the direct descendant of this house,” I reminded him. “...l am.”

"Alpha, you're not actually listening to this are you?” he laughed. “There has never been a femaleBeta, and for good reason too. They do not have the strength required to defend the pack againstlarger male wolves. By extension, my Alexander is still of Beta blood and already started his trainingover a year ago. To jeopardize our pack’s safety for the sake of taking a chance on her is ridiculous.We have a perfectly good heir right here.”

He patted his son on the back who looked embarrassed that his father was still speaking on hisbehalf.

But I could barely pay attention to anything he was doing as my blood began to boil. His arroganceand blatant disrespect for me was evident. Without even knowing what I was capable of, he hadalready written me off for the sake of his own greed. He most likely only wanted his son to becomeBeta to better his own chances of being accepted as an Elder one day. Anything to feel important,for once.

I stepped towards him, a fire now burning within me, and spoke of the one thing I knew he wouldnot be able to refute. It was something I had never wanted to use, something I had refused toinvoke before now, but I knew that it was my best hope. When it came to breaking old habits ofstubborn fools, sometimes you needed to take extreme measures. “Need I remind you who I am,uncle?” I yelled out, a chill in my words. Instantly, the room became dead silent.

My sudden stride towards Uncle William had also been enough to scare him backwards, eventhough I was still several feet away. His face was no longer laughing. “I am not some silly girl withhopeless ambitions as you may think,” I snapped. “I am Ariadne the Saintess, the marked. Thechosen. I was selected by the Goddess herself and a piece of her lives within me. I embody her will,her desires... and yet you are here, merely an insignificant unranked member of our pack, trying totell me that my succession is not possible because of

the genitals i possess?” His face had paled considerably as he stared at me, unable to make even asingle reply.

I laughed cynically at his pathetic appearance. “I didn't realise our deity's decrees would be met withsuch exclusive prerequisites these days. Since when have we held more faith in outdated proceduresover the word of our great mother, Selene?”

I was obviously embellishing the truth a little. The Goddess, Selene, had made it clear her chosenfate for me was actually to be by Aleric's side as Luna. But it wasn't as if she was going t o comedown here and fact check me herself, nor would there be anyone in this room qualified to disagreewith me. At the end of the day, she gave me the power to choose my own destiny, and this is what Ihad decided to do with it. I knew too well how she wouldn't interfere with the choices her childrenmade, having lived through that abandoned hell myself. Finally, I was able to exploit that system formyself. 1 “Aria,” Tytus said with a tone of warning. “You've made your point.” I peeled my eyes offWilliam's pitiful face only to turn back to the Alpha. “So, it would seem we have an interestingpredicament here,” Tytus continued, deep in thought.

He then turned to my father who had been watching me tear into William, a mild amusement i n hiseyes the entire time. “Jarred, I imagine you wouldn't have let her come in here today without havingat least some trust in her capability to handle the job. So, tell us, what is your personal experiencewith Aria that would persuade us to put our faith in her?” My father turned toward me as he spoke."Her ability is commendable in almost all aspects, Alpha,” he started. “She has already proven to mein a short amount of time that, not only does she hold an acute mind for all traits a leader shouldpossess, but her talent in fighting has already far surpassed any expectations I could have possiblyhad for her age.”

"What good is your expectations when she will be knocked flat on her back the minute she isin areal battle, possibly even with a ranked male warrior?” my Uncle William chimed in, finally havingfound his voice again.

Unlike me, my father managed to keep his emotions mostly in check at his younger brother'stasteless remark, choosing to only narrow his eyes just enough that most would have missed i

“She may not be as physically strong as your male fighters, sure,” he replied, “but I think you'll replacethat they will be lucky to just land a hit on her. Her agility and speed are like no other warrior I'veever seen. With continued training, I believe she may even become one of the best fighters in ourpack.” “It's great to hear she takes after her old man,” Tytus said kindly. ...But before we get tomaking a decision on this, let's not forget to address one of the largest obstacles still here in

this room.”

His tone and mannerism then suddenly changed almost instantly, scrutinising me where I stood.“Aria has been prophesied to, not only be my son's mate, but has also been foretold to bring u

s great success should she accept that union. If we all choose to grant Aria her wish in this ambitionof hers, then we must accept that we may lose that advantage as a possible side effect.”

“Alpha,” I interrupted, “with all due respect, I have already given you my word that I will act only inthe interest of the pack to see us succeed. There is no reason to force any romantic union betweenAleric and I when I am fully capable of fulfilling my duties — regardless of whether that be ranked orunranked. However, I feel becoming Beta would be the best compromise for us both, would it not?”I turned to look at Aleric and almost immediately regretted it. He was frowning in confusion, hiseyes glaring at me. I wasn't able to stop the slight tremor that went down my spine. But I didn'thave time to mull on his behaviour for long as the Alpha spoke once more. “Very well, Aria,” heconceded. “I will entertain the possibility that perhaps there is no real reason for you to be joinedvia mate bond. Perhaps the prophecy was misunderstood and it was merely pointing at the fact youboth would hold positions of power to lead us forward.”

Another murmur went out amongst the Elders. I knew they didn't agree with this interpretation atall, some of them having been actually present at the time when they allegedly came to thisrevelation of my future. “I think I'd like to take this to a vote,” Tytus finally concluded. “Aria, William,Alexander... please step outside for a moment whilst we converse. Both the discussion and the votesmade from here on out will remain confidential from all involved parties.”

The three of us bowed and made our way out of the room.

The entire time we stood outside the door, Uncle William regarded me warily. I could tell he wantedto start an argument with me, his mouth opening and closing several times, but every time he wasabout to speak, he would just deflate again. A part of me wanted to smirk at how cowardly his truecolours were.

Alexander on the other hand was silent, looking almost tired. I could only assume he was exhaustedby his father's continued attempts at pushing something onto him that he seemed t 0 notparticularly care about either way. I assumed he was happy enough to accept the role, but he waslacking the same drive of ambition that I held. In a twisted way, it could be perceived as my uncleattempting to live through his son; wanting something for him that he had always been denied. Iwondered if Alexander was ever able to free himself of his father over the years I became Luna

It felt like an eternity waiting for the council to decide. As every second ticked past, the morenervous I became. I ended up leaning against the wall, eyes closed in thought, while I reviewedeverything that had just happened in my mind. However, next to me, my uncle had begun pacingnervously, something I was replaceing increasingly more annoying by the minute.

Some may say it was a good sign though, I told myself. If there had been a strong majority eitherway, then the voting would have been over already. The fact that it had dragged out, for what feltlike an hour now, could only mean that they were having trouble reaching a final decision.

And then, suddenly, the doors opened behind us.

We all looked up towards the Elder who stood there, their face completely unreadable. “Thank youall for your patience,” they said. “You can come in now...” “...\We've reached a verdict.”