A God In Chains

THE heavens never spoke in whispers. They roared. Kael knelt at the edge of the celestial dais, his skin stripped of its golden glow, blackened now with the mark of divine betrayal. The air around him shimmered with judgment, each breath thick with the rancid stench of mortality. Above him, the gods loomed, their faces carved from the cold light of eternity. Their eyes held neither pity nor forgiveness—only a cruelty as infinite as the stars. “You, the god of storms, who once commanded the skies,” boomed the All-Father, his voice rattling the cosmos, “have desecrated the sacred laws. You dared to love what is beneath us. A mortal. A fleeting ember among our eternal flame.” Kael’s fists dug into the marble beneath him, cracks spreading like veins through its surface. “She is more than you will ever understand,” he snarled, the words raw, jagged. “More than this hollow existence you call divine.” The assembly rippled with disdain, a wave of voices sharp as knives. The All-Father

The Crimson Ridge Pack — Ravenmere, Avaren October 2018I didn’t bother setting an alarm for the Ranking Ceremony. The truth was, I’d been dreading this day for years, and no amount of preparation could change that. Maybe that’s why I overslept—a subconscious rebellion against what I already knew was coming.When I woke, the sun was already high, its pale autumn light spilling through my window like a cruel reminder. My heart lurched as I checked the clock. Twenty minutes late.“Shit,” I hissed, yanking on the white ceremonial gown hanging from my closet door. The fabric snagged as I tugged it over my head, and I cursed again, my pulse hammering in my ears.Outside, the woods were alive with the crisp sounds of October. Leaves crunched beneath my feet as I sprinted toward the clearing, branches clawing at my gown and whipping against my arms. My lungs burned, but I couldn’t stop. Not when this was my last chance to avoid being branded an outcast—a rankless wolf.When I broke into the

Eira.The name slammed into me like a strike to the skull.My eyes flew open, and pain followed—throbbing, blinding. It pulsed at the back of my head, squeezing my vision, making my breath catch. My throat felt raw, my body felt too heavy, like I’d been wrung out and left to dry.I swallowed, trying to push past the ache.I wasn’t home.I wasn’t safe.And I wasn’t alone.“You shouldn’t have run. At least not in the rain.”That voice.I stiffened, fingers curling into the sheets. I knew who I would see before I turned, but it still sent a cold rush through me. Kael. Even standing across the room, he took up all the space, all the air. His presence pressing into me too much. The worst part was that he wasn’t even looking at me like he was angry.Like he was anything at all. I gritted my teeth, my heartbeat a ragged, uneven beat in my chest. It didn’t matter how much I hurt. I shoved the pain down and forced myself to sit up.“Let me go,” I rasped. My voice was hoarse, but steady enoug