It was karma.

That's what the former Luna thought. Her son had been hellbent on killing the Creek Pack Alpha when he was down.

Now it's karma, alright. The Moon Goddess always protected Her children. What Luke wanted to commit was a very cruel act. At least wait until the damn Alpha became better, then he could challenge.

It wouldn't even be surprising if her son caught something from the Creek Pack when he paid them a 'little visit', like Luke said. The air there was dirty, filled with dirty people, that's what Luke said. He was bitter, the reason unknown. His son was so stubborn and bitter.

The former Luna was holding her son's hand, the scenery of Luke hooked to machines breaking her heart. She couldn't afford to lose another child. The first death broke her into a million pieces, and she had not completely healed. Luke's death would kill her, then her death would end her mate, which in turn would make the Pack a target for the likes of Shadow Pack, a pack that's been bothering them ever since their to-be Luna rejected their Alpha, making them lose their Alpha to a great sickness. The to-be Luna was from the Black Moon, hence an ongoing hatred has been rooted from years ago. A distant cousin of the Alpha family had to step in and become the Alpha of the Shadow Pack. The Alpha had sworn revenge against their Pack, which got instilled into the recent Alphas down the line.

Michelle was not okay. The trauma from when her daughter died resurfaced with each passing second that she held Luke's hand. Her son could not afford to die. He had to live no matter what.

The door opened, Michelle snapping out of her trance. Samson was carrying a tray of food, all for his mate.

He looked at his son, releasing a sigh. "Do you think it's the Moon Goddess?"

Michelle just shrugged, grabbing the tray from her mate and eating the food.

Samson sat down next to her mate, then grabbed his son's hand, the one his mate had been holding prior.

"I think maybe we should perform a ceremony to apologise and appease the Moon Goddess. She has to forgive us for our wrongdoings," Samson suggested, caressing Luke's hand.

"Mmhhh... that could also work, and while we're at it, we should ask for Her to have mercy on our son and speed up the process of meeting his mate."

"That's a brilliant idea,"

"Do you think he's going to be okay?" Michelle's insecurities were coming at full force. She was trying really hard to be strong for her boy, but at the end of the day, she couldn't keep on pretending that she wasn't hurting anymore. She was hurting. She could not afford to lose her son. The Pack could not afford to lose their Alpha.

"He's going to be just fine, my love. He's our boy afterall. Whatever he caught at the Creek Pack will go away," Samson replied, rubbing circles on her mate's back.

They sat in silence thereafter, with Michelle finishing her food. The mood was dark. Everything felt dark, especially with not knowing whether their son would be okay.

_______

Alpha Luke remained unconscious for the remainder of the week, putting his Pack on edge. Everyone was panicking and yesterday, they were supposed to pay a 'little visit' to the Creek Pack. Since their Alpha was still in a coma, they couldn't go there without him. Afterall, they were just accompanying him.

"How is he?" Beta Peter asked Luke's parents, who were exiting Luke's room.

"Still unresponsive. We're thinking of doing a ceremony to apologise and appease the Moon Goddess. Maybe She will have mercy on our son. I need you to handle everything, okay? Let the members help wherever they can. Samson will deal with the invitations and I'll be looking after my son. Just make sure everything is ready by the next two weeks," Michelle explained, running a hand down her face. She was tired, her energy so low. Fatigued, that's what the Pack Doctor said. They said she needed to rest, but she was stubborn as ever.

"I'll let everyone know, ma'am. And don't worry, I'll make sure everything runs smoothly," Beta Peter assured, then bowed his head, making his way down the hall.

"Let's go and rest. You've had a long day," Samson said, holding Michelle's hand and leading her away from Luke's room and towards their room.

"Should we invite the Shadow Pack?" Michelle asked.

"Absolutely not! We can't have those vultures anywhere near our Luke. If word got out that he's sick, they'll be hounding us for days on end. They can't be trusted those ones,"

"What about Creek Pack? Do they deserve our invitation?"

"I don't know. Should we invite them?" Samson asked back.

"I don't see why not. Their Alpha looks like a decent man who wouldn't do what our son did. I don't think he would attack us when we're down. Send them invitations. Plus, Rolus is still weak."

"But his Warriors are not. You know what I think? There shouldn't be more than twenty people from the same Pack. That way, we won't have to worry about a surprise attack. More specifically, only an Alphas should attend with their nineteen warriors. No other person of power should come except the Alphas. How's that?"

"That could also work."

They arrived in their room, Michelle throwing herself on the bed and before Samson could wish her to have a good sleep, she was already out.

Samson chuckled, then grabbed his phone from the bed and exited their room, then went downstairs to where his office was. He needed to start drafting invites and sending them as soon as possible.

For a ceremony for the Moon Goddess to work, many Packs needed to be available so that the Moon Goddess must be satisfied in seeing Her children together. Even though it put them in danger, Samson decided to invite the Shadow Pack, remembering to inform her mate about his decision.

When night fell and some of the Pack members returned from hunting, Samson was done sending out invites. He had invited four neighbouring Packs and ten distant ones. He was pretty sure the other ten wouldn't make it because it was short notice.

In his invitations, he only said that the invites were for a ceremony, he didn't specify what kind of ceremony. If the other Packs knew what the ceremony was for, they would know that Black Moon was in deep trouble.

It was not everyday that a ceremony was done to appease the Moon Goddess. Not every wolf everytime upset their Creator.

A knock was made on his office door, disturbing his train of thought. Before he could tell the person to enter, the door opened, Beta Peter entering.

His skin was paler than the last time he saw him, prompting the former Alpha to stand up and ask, "How's Luke?"

"He had a seizure, but the doctors managed to stabilize him. You're needed," Beta Peter explained.

"Let's go. Have you told Michelle?"

"No, sir. We didn't want to disturb her rest."

"Good. Thank you. I'll take it from here and go focus on preparing for the ceremony. I'll be sure to let you know if anything changes with his condition, okay?" Samson assured, then smiled a bit at the Beta.

"Thank you."

Samson went on the other direction, going upstairs to his son's room. In there, he found three Pack Doctors keeping an eye on the Alpha.

"What happened?" Samson asked, going over to his son and touching his head.

"He suffered a seizure. Don't worry, he's fine now, but I suggest that we should keep someone in the room with him in case something happens. Who do you suggest we appoint?" Doctor Pierce said, pursing her lips.

"Michelle will do it. She wouldn't want any other person to do it. But for now, I will look after him,"

"Okay. Have a good night, sir," she bowed, then told the other two doctors to follow her out.

Samson sat down on the chair next to his son's bed. He held Luke's hand, saying a little prayer to the ones above to get his son pit of coma. He begged the Moon Goddess to have mercy on his son for he did not know what he was doing.

Samson believed that the Moon Goddess was punishing his son because of the times he terrorized the Creek Pack.

There was nothing he could do for his son except to hold that ceremony. If things went well, then maybe Luke would find his mate. After all, it's been seven years since he was supposed to find his mate.

It's also been seven years since his fated twin's death, which still affected him to this day.

Samson did not want another repeat of last time. He did not want his son to die just like his sister. The first death destroyed them. Luke's one would kill them. What was a world without your children? The Pack came first, yes, but sometimes being a little selfish never killed anybody. The Pack was everything to an Alpha, even the retired ones, but if life no longer seemed important, then the Pack was nothing. Nothing at all.

Some would beg to differ, saying the Pack came first no matter what. It just wouldn't be that way with Samson. Maybe it's because he was no longer the Alpha.