I think I forgot to mention that the pack was an exclusive community and separate from surrounding towns. Vivian explained that this is common with all wolf packs. They usually live in a gated or somehow protected area. Of course wolves work alongside mortals just like Immortals do. The difference is most Immortals do not live in large groups. Large groups of Immortals is called a Fusion, it comes from the term used to describe groups of bats. Vivian explains that technically her group has no name since it is a mixture of Immortals and wolves.
So back to the story. Wolves do not shift until the first full moon after their sixteenth birthday. Arden was all set for his ceremony. Being the Alpha Intended it was to be a big deal. The whole pack gets together, a quick ritual is done and then everyone shifts. They will run and hunt the rest of the night. Fintan and Lorcan would personally help Arden on his first hunt. The females would have a similar ceremony with his twin sister. The difference is women can not be an Alpha. His sister would possibly mate a Beta or more likely an Alpha from another pack.
A week before the full moon Arden turned sixteen. For his actual birthday his intended mate, Lorcan's daughter Fiona, decided they should join as one then. Arden asked about their mating ceremony and she said she did not want to lose her virginity in front of the whole pack. Bad enough they will have to have sex and officially mate in front of the pack when they reach eighteen years of age. Fiona had already had her ceremony and shifted two months prior. She was a fully mature wolf. Although Arden was not yet, they coupled that night. They bit each other as they would in a real mating situation.
Another thing about Weres is they can only procreate with other Weres. The werewolf gene is inherited. Humans can be turned but it is a painful process and most don't survive. It entails that the human be bitten many times over a certain time frame. If the human is cared for and given designated potions, he or she will likely survive the process. Then comes the shifting. That is when most are lost. They can not learn to control the beast inside and go insane. They tear themselves apart or have to be put to death. It is against pack law to turn a human without approval from your Alpha and the Werewolf council.
Immortals and Werewolves used to have a joint council. That was around five hundred years ago. Then came the betrayals and the war was stared. All by a small group of Immortals and Weres. Two nights before Arden and Aoife's ceremony they were attacked in the woods. Lured out by their brother Roderin. He said he wished to play a game in the woods that night, but several Immortals attacked them all. Aoife was killed, Roderin knocked unconscious and Arden abducted.
Arden was supposed to be killed along with his sister but one of the Immortals who had been stalking them fell in love. She found him to be a beautiful boy. She took him back to the place the Immortals were hiding and turned him. A wolf can only be changed into the other species before he shifts for the first time. Afterward the Were genes can not be altered. Tessa took him to her chamber, seduced and then changed him. It is easy to change someone into an Immortal. It is pretty much like what you see on TV. The blood is drained and the victim drinks the blood back from the Immortal. Most times the Immortal incorporates sex because it makes the biting and drinking more pleasurable.
I ask what does any of this have to do with me. Yet again she tells me to be patient. It is a long story and I need all the facts before she tells me my role. The Fusion of Immortals set out to leave the following night. Arden being newly turned was forced to go with them. Unknown to Arden, Tessa had bound him to her. Back at the pack everyone was searching frantically for him while grieving for the loss of Aoife. Being that Roderin was attacked also no one suspected his involvement. Even though the whole thing was his plan. He did not like being the bastard son and felt that since he was conceived after battle he deserved the Alpha position.
Roderin had made a deal with the Immortals. He would let them feed freely in his lands when he was Alpha. One problem with his plan was Fiona was pregnant from her fist time with Arden. Her father was furious but when she gave birth to two sons and a daughter everyone was overjoyed. Roderin lost his title as Alpha Intended to a baby. He was furious. Being only fifteen he could do nothing at that time.
Meanwhile Arden was growing more and more angry with the Immortals. They had stolen his life. He could care less if he got to live forever. He was supposed to be a Werewolf. The most powerful creature. An Alpha Werewolf. He would argue with Tessa regularly over this but it made no difference. He could not change back. He remained very bitter the following years he spent with them.
After the first year he developed a plan. He made the Immortals believe he was happy to be with them and encouraged them to teach him everything they knew. He said as Alpha Intended he was taught everything needed to survive and rule. Since he could not be pack maybe he could become a Fusion leader. The group was pleased with his change and gladly educated him. Within three years he had become a powerful Immortal. A force to be reckoned with. That same year he broke free of Tessa's control and ran from the Fusion.
At that time they were living in England, awaiting the day they received word from Clare. Other Immortals were stationed there to help Roderin with his plan. Arden quickly made his way back to Loch Deirgeirt. He knew from conversations with his Fusion that Roderin was behind the whole attack. Arden knew he could not walk right back into the pack. He would never be accepted. For the first week he spied on them from afar. He lived for a glimpse of Fiona. He had truly loved her and had thought about her everyday since his change. He never loved Tessa, she just controlled him with sex and her blood, like a heroin addict basically. The first time he saw Fiona with children his heart started to break. He knew she was past eighteen and likely mated now. Hopefully it wasn't to Roderin or one of his other brothers.
One night he snuck into her home. She cried for a long time after he convinced her he was not a ghost. He told her what happened and about Roderin. She told him about his children and how his son Arden Jr. or AJ was Alpha Intended. He lost it, telling her they were in danger. Roderin planned to be Alpha and Arden was convinced he would do anything to achieve that, including murdering innocent children. She didn't believe that. It took him some time to convince her that Roderin had him and his sister murdered. They argued the fact that he was not dead. He won that battle because everything he wanted for his life was unattainable now. He asked her to keep her ears open, try to learn about Roderin's plans.
His suspicions proved true. Roderin had a large group behind him. They were planning on murdering Fintan and Lorcan. He visited Fiona once a week for the following months trying to learn all of Roderin's plans. When he had enough proof he went to his father. More like he snuck into his old home. He did not know how his family would react seeing him as an Immortal. His father was not to happy to see him as one. Arden asked if he would rather he had died along with Aoife. When Fintan said yes, Arden knew he could not convince him of Roderin's plans. His father hated him and would think it all jealousy. After the disaster with his father, he left the pack never to return. It was hard to leave Fiona and his children behind. He told her he would send her a letter when he was settled. Before he left, Fiona told him she wanted to make love to him.
"How could you want to be with this?" Motioning to his whole self.
"I know you are no longer Were but you are still the boy I fell in love with. If I am never to see you again, please make love to me."
How could he say no to that. So he spent the rest of the night in bed with Fiona. When she bit him, he bit her back. It was a major turning point in his life. The war between Immortals and Weres was growing out of control. He decided he would have to try to reunite the Council and restore the peace.
Not a year later Arden got the letter that Roderin had murdered Fintan. He didn't even challenge him as a true wolf would, but underhandedly had him murdered by Immortals. That pushed the war into high gear. Immortals murdered Weres on site and the Weres did the same to Immortals. Fiona showed up with one child a week after her letter. Roderin had made his move on the children. AJ and their daughter were dead, but the other son Aedan survived. They were both injured badly but she managed to escape.
Arden took them in and nursed Aedan and Fiona back to health. For the next few years they lived together. Eventually the species difference began to take it's toll on their relationship. He was envious of her ability to shift and hated that he never aged. He was forever a sixteen year old boy while she was twenty five. Werewolves do age very slow so she still looked to be a teen but they knew she would grow old and how would they explain it all to his son. He convinced her to find new pack. Together they worked up a new identity for her and Aedan. They were pretty sure Roderin was still hunting them. He wanted to completely eliminate Arden's bloodline. After making sure Fiona was accepted into another pack he went back for Roderin.
The look on Roderin's face was priceless seeing Arden alive. Roderin cursed the stupid Immortals for turning him. Then enjoyed talking about killing his children and how he figured Fiona was dead being as she was injured when she fled. The battle was vicious that night. Both were severely injured but Arden had to escape because the sun was rising.
The fact that he didn't succeed in killing Roderin, made Arden extremely depressed. He decided that since Fiona was safe he was going to leave the pack alone. He traveled for years without destination. It was a challenge at first with the war going on between the races. The problem was he hated Immortals and envied the Werewolves. He did finally settle in his home country of Ireland. Over the years he secured two other homes throughout Europe. One day he received a letter from Fiona, that she had been discovered by Roderin. By the time he made it to the pack, Roderin had slaughtered over half of them and demanded they acknowledge him as Alpha. Arden found out Roderin's plan to rule all the packs in Ireland not just the Loch Deirgeirt Paca. Along the dead was Fiona. He was told they managed to get the children out.
When Vivian met Arden the war had been waging for a hundred and fifty years. Like she said he prevented her from marrying Roderin. After the murder of her families, Arden took care of her. Arden and Vivian had been friends for many years. When he rescued her he professed his love for her. He told her exactly who he was. Gave her the choice to join him in eternity. A month later they were united. In blood and marriage. He introduced her to his crusade to end the war. Told her that his brother was at the front of it on the Were side. Explained how Roderin has been hunting down and murdering his bloodline. Arden tried to stay a step ahead. He showed her the massive family albums with his entire bloodline inside.
For a hundred and sixty years she helped him in his quest. Together they recruited Immortals and Weres alike, people who wished to see peace restored. Helped him track and keep his bloodline safe. Finally they felt confident enough to challenge Roderin. The first mistake was thinking he would fight fair. The night before the planned battle, Roderin attacked their home. The battle was bloody and Vivian's group was outnumbered. Many were in their own homes planning for the next days fight. The battle was fierce and sadly they were no match for Roderin's army. They held Vivian and made her watch Roderin tear out Arden's heart. Arden's last words were "I forgive you, brother." That seemed to enrage Roderin more.
