1 Chapter One: New goddess on the block.

Darkness is how my story started. I was sleeping and could remember utter darkness. A slight chill woke my senses and I could tell I was outside. There was a stone and it was scratching on my back. Next came my sense of smell. I could smell a very animal-like smell. LIke a dog wet from the rain. Not a dirty dog, just the smell of wet fur. Was it raining? I don't feel any rain. Then came my sense of hearing.

"Is she alright?" the rough voice asked. It was foreign to me. Unfamiliar. It made my stomach feel lopsided and queasy with worry.

"She seems to be ok." said a gentle voice. It sounded so beautiful. She had to be a woman for her hair brushed against my arm. It was so soft. I wanted to say something. Anything and soon my voice found itself.

"um..I-I.." It was hard to talk but even without sight I could tell I was being surrounded and looked at.

"She speaks!" said the gentle voice I could hear the swelling of joy in her tone.

"Are you alright my goddess?" asked the rough voice.

Goddess, I thought, I am not a Goddess, I am Nora. Just plain Nora who lives in her normal house in Detroit. Who would call me a Goddess? I needed to see this person. I tried to pry my eyes open. A task that was very difficult. Slowly I blinked. It was hazy at first. I looked around. I was in a cave, I think. It was rock on every side. There was a light or a glow that allowed me to see, but I was definitely not in my house in detroit.

I looked around and my eyes matched with a wolf. Huge and terrifying. I was afraid of dogs since my neighbor's dog bit me as a child but this was too much. I felt faint. My eyes darted looking for the source of the voices I heard earlier. My stomach jumped up as fear hit me like electricity. I didn't see anyone, I only saw wolves. I was in the center of their pack and I was going to be eaten. I jumped up to my feet. A task that almost made me fall. My limbs felt like stone and I fell down like a baby lamb trying to figure out how to walk.

"Calm down my lady" said that gentle voice and I realized it was coming from a large wolf in front of me. Ok, so I'm going crazy? Am I going to die? I'm definitely going to die. Were thoughts racing through my head at lightning speed. I put my hands on my head to protect myself only to realize I was not wearing my clothes. I jumped up and all eyes were on me.

I looked down and saw I was wearing fine silks and jewelery. The clothes are no better than a bikini with flare and a headdress. I was so completely naked. I had always been ashamed of my body, feeling like it was not good enough to show off. Every inch of me was tainted with my own scrutiny. Instinctively I covered myself with my arms. This time I could see all around. This was definitely a cave. The gentle voice came again and I could finally see, it was the wolf. A wolf who could speak english.

"My lady, are you alright? Please don't let these men scare you." Her tone was still a comfort to me but her appearance made my skin crawl. I could see the wolves all look upon me with curiosity and not hunger.

"Why does she fear us" said the rough voice, though it was dancing on the precipice of concern and sadness. Not at all malice.

"We have not called down the Goddess in many generations, Lucious, she may be startled at the sight of our missing leaders." the boy wolf named Lucious turned away as the female looked back at me with a smile. "I'm so sorry as to call you down here my lady, but we are in dire need of your blessed gift."

"My gift?" I questioned, still glued to my spot.

"Why yes, we need you to help our numbers grow." I blinked as I tried to piece together how I was supposed to do anything. I had no idea what they were talking about. It must have been visible on my face for Lucious snapped at the female wolf.

"Look at her expression, she has no idea what you are talking about, Mila explain what went wrong!" His snap made me panic and I helplessly fell into a sitting position clutching my head for safety. Mila looked at me in shock but spoke to Lucious' question.

"I'm not sure. We did the ritual perfectly but I have never met the Goddess and it's like we can ask our elders now." her eyes met with Lucious' as an unspoken conversation passed through looks alone. Lucious seemed to be the loser as he turned his head and walked away. He called all the others to leave with him and I was left alone with Mila.

It was silent now, as she contemplated what to say. I was taken aback by her fur. Up I had never dared go near a…dog after I was bitten. Her fur looked so soft. It was a creamy orange and white. It made me think of cream sherbert. Her head was tilted downwards as she went over scenarios in her mind. In a moment our eyes met and I could see the gentle soul inside. She lifted her head in a confident way. I watched as all her fur was sucked inward and her stance changed from four legged to bipedal. She was naked now and a woman, though her ears and tail remained. She had a perfect athletic body and I had a small flash of jealousy.

She turned and left down the same tunnel as the boys. I wanted to say something to stop her but my body remained nonmoving. I guess I was in shock. I had never seen anything like this. Was this magic? The beauty of the transformation almost made me forget to wonder how someone could transform like that. Then again, they somehow got me here, in a world where wolves talk and transform into humans.

With everyone gone I finally turned my attention to the area around me. It was more than just a cave, it seemed to be an actual home. There were things dragged here to make it more comfortable. A few beds and a dresser, some hanging lights and posters. Though the center of the room was empty, apart from the stone slab where I had originally woken up. I couldn't help but inspect it now. Since everyone was gone I found my feet more willing to aid and bent down to look at the inscriptions made all along the table. It was a runny writing, it looked like runes.

I could see it was old, like something you would see in a museum. I decided not to touch it, god forbid if something else happened because I touched it. I heard footsteps and turned to see Mila had come back. She was fully dressed now. She had a plain outfit. Just a red shirt and some black jeans. Though her cream ears poked from her head and her bushy tail swayed behind, she looked like she could pass as a normal girl from my hometown.

"I hope this form makes you more comfortable." she said pensively. I jumped at her words but its true. This form did help.

"Y..yes it does…Thank you." She smiled in a way that seemed relieved rather than happy.

"My lady."

"Nora…please just call me Nora." I corrected it. Her eyes went wide for a moment as she was taken aback but she then continued.

"Nora, I feel like you must have a million questions. It's the first time I called the Goddess so I'm not entirely sure why you don't have any memory. And I'm honestly not sure I know if that is normal." she bit her lip in contemplation as her eyes gazed downward again in thought. "Why don't we sit and I can tell you why I called you down. Tell you why we need your help. Afterwards, I can answer any questions you have."

She walked to one of the beds and sat down patting the space next to her. I walked over and sat down. Maybe the explanation would help me feel better.

"We are a small pack. We had only one Elder. We are also in servitude to a Vampire."

"I'm sorry…a what?"

"A…vampire?" she said questioningly. I thought I would say something but decided to hold all my questions for the end.

"Never mind, continue" I said, trying to sound unshaken and failing horribly.

"Well…yes." She began again, " we are in servitude to a vampire. Recently our elder was planning an uprising. He wanted to free us from the Vampire and her wrath but most of our clan was killed in the execution of it all. As punishment the Vampire called for the killing of our elder. As such we are now in a predicament. We have no elders to make proper pack members. Basically without at least one elder, we will eventually die." She looked down and looked at all the open beds around and I could feel the twinge of sadness as she looked upon them.

"So…you need my help get a new elder?" My responde must have snapped her out of thought for she looked at me with a slight surprise.

"Yes…yes exactly. We need you to pick a new elder. Then we can send you back to where you came from." What she asked for was a simple feat and I was ready.

"Alight, well then you." I said. "You can be the new elder." She looked confused.

"No…the elder must be of male descent."

"Oh that's bull," I said with annoyance emanating from me. "I bet you the male elder told you that."

"No, it's part of the ritual that the Goddess must choose a male elder. Otherwise, how would you bless him?"

"I don't know, like this?" I said doing the christian cross to bless myself. "In the name of the father, son, and holy spirit." She blinked a questioning look at me. "Ok…so how am I supposed to bless him?"

"You take the male of choice as a mate."

"What" I said in reply.

"You take the male of cho…"

"Yeah I heard that part." I said interrupting as panic began to ensue. "I mean, i heard that part but…" I stood up and began pacing a bit as embarrassment, nerves, and plain old disbelief battled indie. "But like...what? Like…..what?" She didn't answer this time and I could see she was gazing downward again in compilation again. I didn't like the silence because it made me feel an angry heat rising. Not only was I somehow brought here, to this weird world of wolves and vampires, now I was expected to live with dogs and to mate with one. "I wont do it, you cant make me" I said in the silence.

"No!" said Mila almost in panic "we would never make you do anything. The blessing requires that you not only choose, but that you give the blessing willingly. 100% willingly." The heat started to dissipate but the nerves gave an aftershock. I looked at her, a million questions were flooding me yet I didn't have the strength or courage to ask a single one.

I sat back down, slightly deflated. "And if I choose no one."

"We would have no way to replenish our ranks quick enough, and we will eventually die."

"You said that before, is it a time thing or what?"

"Yes…and no. It's just that other wolf packs would sense the weakness in ours and kill us for our stone." She tilted her head to motion towards the stone in the center of the room. "It's the Moon Slab." She stopped and glanced downward again. Then she looked at me. "How is it that you don't know the most basics of our lives? You are our goddess, surely you have been watching over us all these years. Watching over our tribe and answering our prayers." She looked at me earnestly and I couldn't figure out what to say.

What could I say? I have never even heard of them or any prayers. I wanted to lie, but Mila was too kind. And her big eyes made me think of my little sister. I couldn't lie to her. I sighed. "Mila…the truth is I don't know any of this…This whole world seems new to me. Where I come from Vampires are not real. Just stories." I could see a flash of wonder spread across her eyes. "Neither are talking wolves."

"Talking wolves?" she questioned then looked down before meeting my gaze. "So you don't know anything about our world or customs?" she asked

"Please don't tell anyone, I don't want to stand out, that last wolf looked really mad." SHe softened her expression.

"How could I be mad at you for something you can't control. You don't have any memory of us and our world but I take that as a failure on my end."

"Please don't. I'm sure I did something wrong." She shook her head.

"No, either I have a lot to learn about the goddess and summoning one, or I did something wrong. Seeing as you're successfully here, it has to be the latter." Her ear turned like a satellite and mila changed the conversation. "Lucious is coming, should I let him in?"

"Wait!" i said panicked "I'm not dressed" Mila let out a small laugh as she yelled back.

"Lucious, please stay out for now…and tell everyone to turn to their human forms until further notice." There was a small growl in his throat as I heard the scratch of nails turn and walk away.