by Jan Delima
Stamping her shoes to pat the snow, Elen unbuckled them from her boots and made her way toward a rock. Clearing off the snow, she sat down and opened the basket. She removed a sandwich filled with roasted beef and gravy and tore it in half. Elen didn’t eat much meat, but she took a bite then for Saran’s benefit, offering her the other half. “My brother and his mate live on an island not far from here. I believe you know where it is.”
Saran snagged the sandwich and chewed while she listened.
“You are welcome in their home.” The wolf prepared to bolt; Elen could see it in her stance and the way her eyes shifted to the shadows within the trees. “My brother was once a Bleidd, like you. His name is Luc, but the Guardians call him the Beast of Merin.”
A glint of recognition entered her gaze. Malicious rumors always skulked among their kind, and it seemed even into crevices far below the earth.
“Luc will be kind to you. He will welcome you into his home, as will his mate. And I can assure you they don’t judge children by the actions of their parents.” It had been some time since Elen called her gift, but she did so then. Reaching her senses into the dormant forest, she felt for life under the snow. It began to melt, and Saran backed away but didn’t run. Soon moss appeared, yellow and bleached until Elen fed it with life. A daisy seed took root, a green stem emerged and unfurled, followed by a bud and white petals.
Plucking the flower, Elen held it out to Saran. “Your mother loved you very much. She would want you to go.”
The wolf paused, her gaze searching. She wanted to trust, but she had more years of shadows to chase away. However, she was Maelorwen’s daughter and proved it by stepping forward to nuzzle Elen’s hand.
The air between them shimmered with energy as soon as they touched. Elen sucked in her breath. The power that rose from the black wolf held two signatures, one of an enchantress and the other of a shifter. Elen curled her hands into the dark fur and tested the dormant energy underneath. This needed no taking of a life but a trigger to ignite what was already there.
Saran blinked with surprise but not fear, and a knowing that came from her mother’s bloodline.
“Do you want this?” Elen asked to be sure.
Fire blazed in golden eyes, followed by a sharp nod.
Elen fed her a single spark of energy and an enchantress emerged. Dark mahogany hair fell down pale shoulders after her shift. She remained on all fours, her face forward with an expression of awe and uncertainty.
Gareth shifted as well. For what purpose, Elen wasn’t sure. Nude, and obviously besotted, he reached into the basket and grabbed a wool blanket he had packed earlier. Wrapping it around Saran’s form, he lifted her in his arms. His possessive stance removed all doubts of his intentions.
Having already earned her trust, Saran frowned as if trying to find a place for unfamiliar limbs, giving them more attention than the man holding her. Like Cormack, she seemed fascinated with her hands.
“Are you planning to carry her out like that, Gareth?” Elen couldn’t help but tease.
Silver eyes narrowed. “If I have to. She’s not staying here.” He looked down at Saran’s upturned face in an expression similar to Cormack’s when Ms. Hafwen had revealed herself. Gobsmacked, to be sure. So much so, that he leaned down and placed a tender kiss on her lips.
And received a slap across his face. Well, it was more of a swat from a clawed hand, and an affronted snarl.
Elen laughed at Gareth’s bemused expression. “May you dream of first kisses until the sun chases away the moon.”
Saran stilled when she heard the words, looking to Elen with wide eyes. Yes, her mother had said them to her too.
Curling her hand in Cormack’s fur, Elen lifted her face to the sky and hoped that Maelorwen was watching. In the summer, she would dance under the stars, but for now she whispered her name . . .
= Character = Term
AERON
Former Walker; once a messenger to Ceridwen in the Otherworld; has lost the ability to walk between worlds.
ANNWFN; OTHERWORLD; LAND OF FAERY
Homeland of the Welsh Celtic deities, similar to sídh of Irish mythology; where the Tuatha Dé Danann reside; the Land of Faery and magical beings.
AUDREY (AD 2009–)
Child who can shift into a wolf; parents were killed while in hiding to protect her from the Guardians; assigned as Taliesin’s only Walker.
BEDDESTYR; WALKER
Messenger to Ceridwen in the Otherworld.
BLEIDD; WOLF
A Guardian descendant born or trapped in wolf form who cannot change to human; human intelligence exists within the wolf.
BRAN
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen.
BRIALLEN
Guardian who resides in Wales with her husband; wife of Maelor; mate of Teyrnon.
CADAN
Son of Neira; cousin of Rosa; Math’s former lover.
CASTELL AVON; RIVER CASTLE
A castle on the island of Avon; located in the White Mountains of New Hampshire; home of Luc and Rosa.
CERIDWEN; CELTIC GODDESS
Welsh Celtic goddess, worshiped by ancient Celts as the great sow goddess; though less recognized, Ceridwen was also revered as the goddess of wolves; known to brew potions of transformation and knowledge; Earth Mother of Darkness and Light; master of animal transformation; birth mother of Taliesin.
CERNUNNOS; CELTIC GOD
Welsh Celtic Lord of Animals; worshiped by ancient Celts as the Great Hunter; commonly depicted in Celtic artifacts with horned animals, such as the horned snake of Celtic tradition, and the stag; honored by ancient Celts as the leader of the Wild Hunt, where spirits of the dead were carried to the Otherworld.
CORMACK
Brother of Siân and Taran; born in wolf form without the ability to transform to human; human intelligence exists within the wolf; given the power to shift by Elen in the first battle of the Dissenters’ War against the Guardians.
COUNCIL OF CERIDWEN; GOVERNING ASSEMBLY OF ORIGINAL GUARDIANS
A self-proclaimed governing body compiled of eight surviving Original Guardians.
Council members in alphabetical order: Bran, Edwyn, Gweir, Maelor, Neira, Pendaran, Rhys, William.
CYMRU; WALES
Homeland of the Original Guardians.
DARON
Leader of the Ontario territory; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
DEWISEDIG; CHOSEN HUMAN
A human mate of a Guardian or Guardian descendant whose offspring can transform into a wolf.
DRWGDDYDDWG; EVIL BRINGER
A derogatory description of Guardian descendants born in human form without the ability to transform into a wolf. The name was created by Original Guardians, fearful of their loss of power.
DRYSTAN
Leader of the Blue Ridge Highland territory of Virginia; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
DYLAN (AD 329–)
The alpha wolf and leader of the Katahdin territory; husband and mate of Sophie; father of Joshua; eldest brother of Luc and Elen; son of Merin.
EDWYN
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen.
ELEN (AD 331–)
The healer of the Katahdin territory; sister of Dylan and Luc; daughter of Merin; cannot shift into a wolf but can manipulate nature.
FINNBARR (AD 1682–)
Also known as Porter; head of home security of Rhuddin Hall of the Katahdin territory; has a tattoo of a Celtic cross in honor of his Irish mother; cannot transform into a wolf.
GARETH
Porter of Castell Avon.
GAWAIN
Former Walker; once a messenger to Ceridwen in the Otherworld; has lost the ability to walk between worlds.
GWARCHODWYR; GUARDIAN
> Descendants of Original Guardians who follow the command of the Council of Ceridwen.
GWARCHODWYR UNFED; GUARDIAN, FIRST IN ORDER; THE ORIGINALS
An Original Celtic warrior appointed by Ceridwen to protect her son Taliesin; taught how to draw energy from the earth to transform into wolves; served Taliesin as a child; ages at a very slow rate. The oldest surviving Original Guardian was born 95 BC. There were forty-eight Original Guardians; only nine remain.
GWEIR
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen.
HAFWEN; MS. HAFWEN
A pixie sent to earth to teach Elen how to use her gift; until trust is granted, the viewer will see her only as a winter wren.
HEN WAS; OLD SERVANT
Slaves to the Original Guardians and the Council; Guardian descendants born without the ability to transform into a wolf; age at the same slow rate of an Original Guardian.
ISABEAU
Leader of the forest region of Minnesota; family was tortured and killed in the house of Rhun while serving the Original Guardians.
JOSHUA (AD 1995–)
Son of Dylan and Sophie.
KALEM
Leader of Alaskan territory; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
KOKO (AD 1868–AD 1946)
Luc’s deceased wife.
LLARA
One of four leaders who occupy the territories of Russia; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
LUC (AD 342–)
Youngest brother of Dylan and Elen; son of Merin; husband of Rosa; banished at birth by his mother for being born in wolf form; raised by Dylan; known as the Beast of Merin.
LYDIA
Daughter of Enid; sister of Sulwen; works in the kitchens of Rhuddin Hall; cannot transform into a wolf.
THE MABINOGION
Also referred to as The Mabinogi; a collection of Celtic folklore from medieval Welsh manuscripts, including The White Book of Rhydderch and The Red Book of Hergest. The first translation of The Mabinogion into English was by Lady Charlotte Guest in the mid-nineteenth century.
MADOC
Leader of the mountain regions of Montana; captained the ship that brought Luc, Elen and Dylan to the New World; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
MAELOR
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen; husband of Briallen.
MAELORWEN
Also known as Mae; healer who lived in the hills when Dylan and Elen were children; taught Elen the medicinal uses of plants; the first Guardian descendant born without the ability to shift; tortured by the Guardians; currently resides in Castell Avon.
MATH (62 BC–AD 2013)
An Original Guardian; former leader of the White Mountains territory of New Hampshire; former husband of Rosa; loyal to the Council of Ceridwen; executed by Dylan.
MELISSA
Niece of Cormack; daughter of Taran and Edward; mother was killed in the first battle of the Dissenters’ War against the Guardians; five years old.
MERIN
An Original Guardian; mother of Dylan, Elen and Luc.
MORWYN
Former Walker; once a messenger to Ceridwen in the Otherworld; has lost the ability to walk between worlds.
NEIRA
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen; mother of Cadan; aunt of Rosa.
NESIEN
Former Walker; once a messenger to Ceridwen in the Otherworld; has lost the ability to walk between worlds.
NIA
Leader of the northern New York territory; views the Original Guardians with disdain.
PENDARAN
Original Guardian; head of the Council of Ceridwen.
PENTEULU; HEAD OF FAMILY
Leader of a territory; alpha wolf.
PORTER; RESPECTED SERVANT
Head of home security.
RHUDDIN; HEART OF TIMBER
The name Dylan chose for his territory, located around Katahdin, the highest mountain peak in Maine; the northern end of the Appalachian Trail.
RHUN (58 BC–AD 2013)
An Original Guardian; killed by Sophie in the first battle of the Dissenters’ War against the Guardians.
RHYS
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen.
ROSA (AD 1702–)
Widow of Math; wife of Luc; leader of the White Mountains territory of New Hampshire; parents were killed while protecting Rosa from the Council of Ceridwen.
SERPENT OF CERNUNNOS
A flexible sword in the shape of Cernunnos’s horned snake, forged in the Otherworld as a gift for Taliesin. The wearer of the Serpent is given a heightened perception of their surroundings and a connection to beings of the Otherworld.
SIN
Dylan’s ex-lover; eldest sister of Taran and Cormack; threatened a pregnant Sophie in the woods the night Sophie left Dylan; the woman who gave Sophie her scars; killed by Math.
SIN
See Taliesin.
SOPHIE (AD 1975–)
Wife and mate of Dylan; mother of Joshua; daughter of Francine; the first human to give birth to a shifter in more than three hundred years; her aging process has slowed since carrying Dylan’s child.
SULWEN
Daughter of Enid; sister of Lydia; works in the kitchens of Rhuddin Hall; cannot transform into a wolf.
TALIESIN; “SIN” (42 BC–)
Son of Ceridwen; possesses powers of transformation and prophecy; Sophie’s former employer. Taliesin spent much of the medieval ages intoxicated; therefore, it was during this time that many stories of his antics were documented by humans. Though the Original Guardians were assigned by his birth mother as protectors, Taliesin views most of them with disdain.
TARAN
Deceased sister of Siân and Cormack; mother of Melissa; killed by Rhun in the first battle of the Dissenters’ War against the Guardians.
TEYRNON
First-in-command of Luc’s guard; mate of Briallen; Guardian descendant with the ability to shift; father was human of Norse descent; homestead destroyed by the Guardians in the late 1600s for daring to live outside their rules.
TREE OF HOPE
A gateway between earth and the Otherworld.
VALE
Also called Glowing Vale and Ystrad Gloyw; an ethereal dreamlike world between earth and the Otherworld.
WILLIAM; GWILYM
Original Guardian; member of the Council of Ceridwen.
WULFLING
Wulflings begin as infant shifters, often deserted by the death of their parents while in hiding; left to fend for themselves; without the company of humans, they are unable to learn by example; instincts of their wolves often become more dominant than their humanity.
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