Epilogue
GALEIA
The ocean wind whips at my black hair as I stand at the edge of the platform high above the waves.
Far below me, in the clearing outside the tower, there is a bustle of activity. More than this tower might ever have seen.
I tug at the neckline of the black dress I’m wearing. It’s made of silken material that’s fit for this occasion, but I’d rather be dressed in leather and hunting in the forest than staring down at what will soon be a wedding ceremony for the oldest of my brothers.
Aksel is a small figure from this high up, where he stands next to Father and Mother, but he surpassed me in height years ago, now matching Father in stature and strength.
So, too, do all my brothers.
All five of them.
They are so fierce, and their black, metal claws are so renowned that some of the humans have started calling them the Iron Wolves. They shun the name, but it isn’t their reputation that matters today.
Today, peace will finally be forged.
Aksel will marry Charlotte, the daughter of the human Queen Rachel Exalted, solidifying an alliance between the human Queendom and my family.
If I were cynical, I would think it was arranged purely for political purposes, to finally put to rest the fear the humans have of my mother.
But Aksel loves Charlotte.
He would have claimed her as his mate years ago if it weren’t for all the human customs he had to navigate, which matter even more because she’s the heir to the human throne.
He’s had to be careful.
Today is the culmination of years of cautious, patient steps.
For a moment, I teeter on the edge of the platform overlooking the clearing, my balance perfectly placed to keep me from falling.
It’s the kind of balance that only winged creatures have.
Not surprising since I was born to be one.
Sometimes, I catch Mother glancing at me as if she expects me to ask her questions about my origins.
I don’t remember much. My mind seems to have blocked out much of it and I’ve never tried to open those doors, but I know that I was born as a Valkyrie. I remember the uncomfortable stumps on my back and the single deformed feather that itched horribly. Sometimes, I remember the scent of fire but nothing else to give that memory context.
Idoknow that I chose to be a wolf, and I have never, not even for a heartbeat, regretted my choice.
I also know that if I ask for more information, Mother and Father will tell me everything.
But I won’t ask.
Because then I will know my full name, and names have power.
I will not tie my life to the past.
I’m about to step back from the edge of the platform when there’s a stir in the clearing below.
A man approaches from the eastern side, fully visible to me from where I stand. He steps out of the forest as if he might have walked all the way here.
At his appearance, the nearby guests already gathered in the clearing immediately hush and veer away from him.
A path quickly opens up for him, but the tension I sense in the air tells me the guests are avoiding him out of caution, not reverence.
