Excerpt - Covenant - Origins

“Aunty? What ever happened to Maria? What is L’ordine Del Lupo?”

“Ah, your Italian has improved since I last saw you. You were barely 21. We will talk about Maria another time, my curious one. Please take comfort that Maria lived a long life, and remained in her wolf guise, even in her death. I will take you to our sacred grounds when the time comes as she is buried with others of our kind.”

“There were more of us?”

“Oh yes. Your great, great grandmother, Antionette whom you were named after, and my mother Lucia whom I lost when I was so very young and others before them. My mom’s early death limited my education with all of this, which is why the journal seemed so incomplete. But I will tell you what I do know of witchcraft and L’ordine Del Lupo.”

And so she began...

“The Origini or origins of the ‘blessed’ mythology tells of a spirit referred to as Lilith whose energy existed in the atmosphere and sprung from an unknown mighty force. In certain circles, the people believed that this force was nature, a Goddess who existed alongside the Christian God, but in secret. The story goes that God transformed Lilith into a human to serve Adam. This was a punishment against the Goddess, who had spurned God’s deceitful and immoral advances. The Goddess, however, did not want Lilith to endure what she had. The Goddess gave Lilith special gifts, like the ability to see into the future, to create remedies for healing and prosperity, and the inner strength to be self-sufficient. She also imbued her with the knowledge of the universe and a belief that her personal choices were to be valued, respected, and not ignored. She never wanted Lilith to feel powerless or made to serve Adam or anyone. Lilith was the first feminist and you already know in centuries to follow, some called the followers of Lilith witches.

Adam though, had come to fear Lilith’s abilities and asked God to bring him someone that he would not fear. As such, Eve sprung from Adam’s rib so the bible tells. After granting Adam’s request, God still cursed Lilith by turning her into a creature of the night, a wolf. God told Adam to follow in the light, always, as reparation for the gift of Eve, which he had bestowed upon him. If Adam did that, God would protect him when night fell.

Although the Goddess’s powers were limited, she was able to transform Lilith into her human form during the day, but Lilith reverted to her wolf form at night. Lilith continued using her talents to help others as she traveled to faraway lands when she was human. Eventually, her wolf form waned and only appeared during the full moon cycles. As time progressed, the word of Lilith began to spread and her teachings and healing abilities were well known everywhere.  

After the death of Eve’s son, Abel, by Cain’s hand, God made Cain immortal so that he would walk the earth for an eternity to live with the guilt of his crime. However, Lilith took pity on Cain, and to atone for his sins, he helped Lilith recruit other followers to her teachings. Lilith believed as the Goddess believed that there could only be harmony and equality if humans co-existed with nature for the benefit of all people, not just a select few.

Lilith and Cain’s descendants created supernatural beings, some manifested as good, others, as evil. You know them today as fairies, elves, demons, sprites, vampires, druids, and witches. The Druids were great teachers and prophets that possessed knowledge, beyond the physical realm, but unlike those beings who could exist alongside humans, they often hid in the shadows and formed other secretive sects. Vampires and witches could take human or animal form so they were able to live in the mortal world.

For witches, though, Lilith’s lineage was weak. Some of her kin retained their wolf form as day turned into night while others stayed human, and few could be both. Those who no longer possessed their wolf form when the full moon was high, formed an organization called The Order of the Wolf, in Italian it means ‘L’ordine Del Lupo’ to help protect those who could shift, ‘the blessed,’ from others who would do them harm. The offspring of Cain, however, needed human blood to survive, and could only exist in the dark. This is why vampires cannot survive during the day, as they would perish due to the sun's light.

As the wheel of time turned and after Lilith’s mortal death, Cain chose to bury himself deep into the ground because he could no longer live knowing he could not control his need to kill others to survive. Without Lilith to guide him, his guilt and shame sent him into a dark depression and finally a kind of quiet death, never to rise again. The Order of the Wolf continued to prosper for centuries thereafter, through wars, religious upheavals, and famine with one goal, to keep Lilith and Cain’s histories alive and to use the powers of nature and the universal energy of the cosmos to bring about health and prosperity to those who needed it and would never take it for granted.”

“So, I’m a descendent of Lilith?”

“Yes. You my little one, can be human or wolf any time day or night, and you are a powerful witch.”

“So, other supernatural creatures have co-existed with humans throughout the centuries?”

“Yes, but you may not have seen them. They are at risk if found out and some cannot pass for humans, but you will feel them when the winds blow, storms rage, the grounds shake, the tides shift or the leaves fall. Their energy is all around you; some say Lilith’s unyielding, eternal power and goodwill still exist within all of them, even beyond her mortal death. Nevertheless, my little one you must beware of organizations that sprung up alongside The Order of the Wolf, as they had other goals. Some, to extinguish or control those who are different, and others, like The Covenant, kept watch over the supernatural population and would interfere, should a species become harmful to humans. It was believed that the members of The Covenant could see that which is unseen, but it is unknown as to how they received their second sight, as we called it. Many other organizations pretended to carry the banner of protection for all humans, but it was seldom equal.”

“So, are any of these organizations still around, today?”

“Sadly, I do not know. Since the Salem Witch Trials and the destruction of the wolf population, including many of those who were ‘blessed,’ few members of the Order of the Wolf remained. As far as the Covenant, it was assumed they split off into other factions, so there isn’t much information I have for you with their history.”

“I can’t be the only wolf-human shapeshifter alive?”

“I do not know how many of us are left and you might be the last of our kind. I was however, told of a prophecy when I was a little girl by my grandma Antionette that one day a child would be born out of wedlock on a Spring Equinox and that she would be the key to a new evolution for the ‘blessed’ and that her lineage would be powerful enough to continue our kind. I believe your birth was prophesized.”

“Me?”

“Yes, my little one.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“Because I am your father’s biological mother, not your grandma Sophia. My DNA was passed down to you through him because I had an affair with Sophia’s husband. Because of this, I was ex-communicated. Sophia raised your dad as if he was her own because the family believed that a child should not suffer for the sins of the parents. However, because Sophia did not have any female children and I was the eldest sister and unwed when I gave birth to your father; that is how you became one of the ‘Blessed,’ and why I believe the prophecy has come true.”

 “I’m sure that’s purely coincidental.”

“You still do not believe? My love, you are an evolutionary miracle and command great powers like the witches of old. Remember that day by the river basin? I came because I felt your energy when you cast your spell.”

“So, it was you, in your wolf guise.”

“Yes. But you already knew that deep down inside.”

“True, and now, I’m starting to believe…everything.”

“Good. You must remain vigilant, be careful, and embrace all that is you, as it will serve you going forward. It is why you were given the gift with my bite earlier than your 35^th birthday, that day.”

“So, you planned that?”

“Yes, as I said before, I grow weary of this life. I wanted your transition to happen sooner so that we would have enough time together for me to teach you all I know.”

“And the letter?”

“I wanted to get that to you sooner but couldn’t, so I hid it in the journal.”

“But what if I didn’t find the journal?”

“I had faith you would, Prophecies are seldom wrong.”

“True.”