Chosen To Kill The Wolf King

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~~~RORY ANNE~~~

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"The prophecy has chosen you, Rory Anne Spears, to kill the Wolf King."

For a moment, I forget how to breathe. My fingers go numb at my sides. My body freezes, but my heart beats fast.

I stare at the Oracle, waiting for her to take back her words, but she only looks at me with those haunting eyes, as though she's already seen how my story ends.

"Me?" I whisper, my voice hoarse. Today is my eighteenth birthday. I should be celebrating with my friends, looking forward to my future, and enjoying the first day of my adult life. Instead, I'm being told that I'm destined to kill the most feared werewolf in existence: the Wolf King.

The Wolf King. Cain Orion. Even his name is enough to silence a room full of werewolves. He is the most feared creature in the supernatural world, the king whose reign has brought death and destruction to the Shadow World. No one has been able to stop him. The supernaturals who dared to stand against him ended up dead, and now the Oracle is telling me I'm supposed to accomplish what no one else could.

But why me?

I’m no one special. I’m an Omega, the weakest rank among werewolves. I have never even completed my first transformation, and controlling Annie is a struggle I haven’t overcome. I am hardly the kind of wolf anyone would choose to stand against a king, let alone kill one.

And apparently, I don't even get the choice not to.

“W—why me?” I finally manage to ask. “There are stronger wolves. Warriors who have spent their entire lives training to fight him. Why would the prophecy choose someone like me?”

“The prophecy does not choose without reason,” the Oracle replies. “The Wolf King has grown too powerful, Rory Anne. If he is not stopped, the Shadow World will fall completely under his control, and his hunger for power will not end there. The human world will be next.”

My stomach twists.

“The human world?”

“Your destiny is tied to his, though you do not yet understand how. You must survive long enough to discover your strength and fulfill the prophecy. You must leave for the human world immediately.”

I stagger backward, my heart pounding. “B—but my home is here. My friends are here. My entire life is here!” My voice trembles as I struggle to process her words. “Why can’t I stay and train? If I’m supposed to kill him, shouldn’t I be learning how to fight him here?”

“Because the Wolf King is already searching for you,” the Oracle answers sharply. “Your eighteenth birthday has brought you into the reach of the prophecy, and he has discovered that you exist. If you remain in the Shadow World, his army will find you before you are ready to face him. The Council has prepared a place for you in the human world, away from his immediate reach. You will learn to live among humans while the Council prepares you for the battle ahead. But understand this, Rory Anne: the human world is not beyond his reach forever.”

A chill runs down my spine.

How am I supposed to kill a king when I can barely control my wolf?

I turn to Mother and Father, searching their faces for any sign that this is a mistake. Then I look at my elder brother, Tommen, who stares at the floor, and then back to the Oracle.

Suddenly, a loud thunder rings out, rattling the windows. It startles us all, and Mother grabs my arm.

"It's happening." The Oracle's eyes roll white when she says it. I'm out of breath because I can't believe what is happening.

The three witches standing behind her with their cloaks hooded over their heads rush to the window. They look out, and turn back to us. "The sky is dark, master," one says.

The Oracle's eyes return to normal, and one of the witches helps her to her feet. She turns to me. "You have to go now. He has discovered where you are. He will be coming with his army to kill you any moment now."

"Come on, Rory Anne." Mother wraps her arm around me and steers me toward the door. Father and Tommen follow close behind.

"What about our things? Won't we even pack?" I look back over my shoulder, but she tugs me forward.

"We don't have the time for that," Mother says.

"I can't even say goodbye to my friends?"

"No, honey. Your life is at risk." Father pulls the door open, and a strong wind slams in, whipping my hair across my face. It is truly dark and windy outside. Then I hear voices, and I turn to the witches. They are chanting, their hands raised above their heads. Suddenly, a swirling, bright portal opens.

"Go now! You don't have much time," the Oracle says. Before I can say anything, Mother pulls me in.

When I step through the portal, everything I have ever known disappears behind me.

My home. My friends. My old life.

I'm eighteen, an Omega who can't even control her own wolf, and apparently, the only person capable of killing the most powerful werewolf in existence.

I don't know how I'm supposed to become powerful enough to kill him.

I only know that if I fail, both worlds will fall under Cain's rule.