005

My head buzzed with confusion as I tried to process the horror before me.

I instinctively stepped back, only to feel something wet beneath my foot.

I glanced down, and gasped. Blood. The floor of the train was soaked in it. Dozens of Lythari wolves lay lifelessly across the carriage.

Some were mid-shift, frozen between forms, their bodies twisted in agony. My chest clenched.

A massacre had taken place. I knew it. I knew the Valtors would attack the Lythari. But nothing could have prepared me for the sight of so many girls, my age, slaughtered like animals.

Before I could react, someone shoved me hard to the floor. "Move!" a voice roared.

A Valtor male rushed past me, disappearing through the exit. Chaos erupted. Screams, shouts, heavy footsteps, all tangled into a nightmarish chorus.

I sat frozen for a moment, sweat running down my forehead.

My heart pounded against my ribs like a war drum. Where were Rita and Eric? I forced myself to move, stepping over the bodies as I scanned each face in panic.

Relief washed through me, I didn’t see Rita or Eric among the dead.

But where were they? Suddenly, I felt it.

A dark, cold presence behind me. The air grew heavy, thick with dread. I could barely breathe.

I turned around slowly—and nearly screamed. It was him. The trapped shifter.

The same monstrous figure who had addressed us the night before. His red eyes locked onto mine like chains, his towering form radiating menace.

"What are you still doing here?" he asked, his voice sending a shiver down my spine.

"Everyone else has left the train." I opened my mouth, but no words came. My throat felt dry, my mind scrambled for something to say.

I glanced around. He was right. I was completely alone on the blood-drenched train. The others had already left.

"I... I was looking for my friends," I managed to whisper. My voice cracked under the weight of fear. He stared at me in silence.

For a brief moment, something flickered in his eyes, softness. But it vanished in an instant, replaced by a piercing glare. "You mean Rita and Eric?" he asked. My heart stopped.

He knew their names? My hands clenched into fists. I felt sick. "H-How do you know them?" He tilted his head slightly.

"I read your mind," he replied flatly. Mind reading? That wasn’t a normal werewolf ability.

Only witches—or vampires—could do that. No… he wasn’t just a trapped shifter. He was something else.

A hybrid. A mix of magic and beast. A strange warmth bloomed in my chest. There was something about him... something broken.

Trapped. Like he was more prisoner than monster. His eyes flicked to mine—and darkened instantly.

"Don’t even think about it," he growled, his voice like thunder.

I stumbled back, trembling. He must have read my thoughts again.

I swallowed hard, trying to calm myself. "You need to get off this train," he said sternly.

"We’ve arrived at the Blood Moon Camp. Join the others... or stay here and be devoured by rogues." Then he turned and walked away, disappearing down the aisle.

Rogue werewolves...? My stomach twisted. I couldn’t stay here. Still, a hollow ache settled in my chest.

Rita and Eric had left me. No warning. No effort to wake me up.

What if I had died in the attack? I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists. “Trust no one,” I whispered bitterly to myself.

I stepped off the train, my heart pounding with uncertainty. And then I froze.

My breath caught in my throat. Before me stood the Blood Moon Boot Camp— But it wasn’t what I expected.

Massive, ancient spires rose high into the darkened sky, encased by towering walls that shimmered with power.

The architecture was gothic and majestic, like something out of a legend.

It was beautiful... and terrifying. The air buzzed with murmurs and footsteps as dozens of wolves, Lythari, Valtor, and others, moved toward the main gates.

I stepped forward but recoiled almost immediately. Something sharp burned my nostrils.

I sniffed the air and winced. Arsenic. Magic. The scent was sickening. There were witches here... or werewolves channeling forbidden power.

I swallowed hard and pushed forward, slipping into the crowd so I wouldn’t stand out.

As we neared the gates, my eyes widened. Towering guards stood on either side, three times the size of any bear.

Hulking werewolves, partially shifted, armed with brutal morning stars and ancient steel.

They didn’t move. They didn’t blink. Just watched. I lowered my gaze and walked beneath their shadow, heart thundering in my ears.

Once inside, the sheer scale of the camp stunned me. High stone walls surrounded us on all sides.

The space could easily hold half a million werewolves. And yet, blood stains painted the stones in dark, violent splatters.

This was no training ground. It was a battlefield. Suddenly, the crowd came to a halt. A group of trapped shifters blocked the way, their presence radiating power.

Silence spread over us like a suffocating blanket. No one dared move. Then I heard it. Two girls whispering beside me. "What’s going on now?"

"I think... I think the Lycan King is about to address us."

"Do you think he’s hot?" "Seriously, Rebecca? We’re standing on a pile of corpses and you’re thinking about his face?" I glanced sideways at Rebecca and barely held back a scoff.

Some people had no sense of timing. A moment later, the silence was shattered by heavy footsteps echoing across the courtyard.

I turned instinctively, and my breath caught. A man approached, flanked by moon soldiers.

No, not a man. A god among wolves. He was tall, powerfully built, his steps steady and silent.

His hair was waist-length and white as snow, his skin pale, his lips blood red. Ice-blue eyes glowed with deadly precision.

His nose was sharp, his brows thick, his face impossibly perfect. But it wasn’t his beauty that stole the air from my lungs.

It was his aura. Dark. Dominant. Lethal. He radiated authority... and danger. The entire crowd stilled.

Even thewind seemed to pause. All eyes turned to him as he stepped forward. Then, suddenly, a voice screamed in my head.

“MATE!” My wolf, Lyla, roared with excitement, her voice shaking through my soul. My heart dropped.

I staggered back a step, my breath stolen. I stared at him, my mate was the Lycan King?