I had become something I never imagined I could be—powerful, skilled, and completely unrecognizable from the girl who crossed this Pack’s border terrified and starved.I rubbed lotion into my face, halfway through my routine, when I heard it.A voice—soft but unfamiliar.“Hello, Selene.”I froze mid-motion. My hand stopped just short of my cheek.That wasn’t Nora. The voice didn’t sound like her.“It’s me,” the voice added gently.A chill went down my spine.“Who are you?” I asked silently.“I am Luna. Your wolf.”My knees almost gave out.I hadn’t even realized the tears were coming until they were already rolling down my cheeks.All this time, I thought I was wolf-less. That maybe I was too different, too broken, too… other to ever feel what it meant to be a full-blooded wolf.But she’d been there all along.I moved to the mirror slowly, inspecting my face. My body. My soul, maybe. I still looked like me—the same scars, the same eyes, the same history carved into my skin—but inside?
As the last of my strength slipped from me, I whispered to her with what little air I had left, “Remember who you are, Selene. You are me. And this… this is what I am.”The words were soft, but somehow the wind picked them up and carried them. Then everything around me faded into dust.I snapped back into the real world.My eyes flew open and I screamed.The transition was so violent, so sharp, I could still feel the phantom pain of the sword in my back. My whole body trembled.And there—standing just inches in front of me—was Alpha Black.His tall frame cast a long shadow over the grass. His dark eyes were locked on mine.I scrambled to my feet, my chest heaving.“What the hell was that?” I whispered, panic tightening my throat.“I do not know,” Nora answered quietly inside my mind. “Those aren’t my memories. I didn’t do that. I didn’t live that.”Her voice was shaken. That alone scared me more than anything.“Selene?” Alpha Black said again, this time more gentle. But it still made
I stepped outside, squinting into the sunlight and silently asking myself what kind of “preparation” Alpha Black had meant. Training had already started, and I was still in the same clothes—light, breathable, good enough to move in.Good enough for now.I followed the sound of clashing bodies and barked commands. The Pack was already mid-session, and sure enough, I spotted Diva waving me over from across the training field. She and Dianne were lounging on the grass, sweat-slicked and grinning like they'd just come out of a warzone and loved every minute of it.I jogged over, and as I approached, they both stood.Without much of a greeting, the training began.Sparring. Forms. Movement drills. It didn’t matter what came first—once I tapped into that rhythm, everything faded. My muscles burned, my breathing grew heavy, and my limbs moved like they remembered things I hadn’t even been taught yet.It was exhausting—and freeing.Afterward, soaked in sweat and mud, we all headed back to the
Alpha Black walked ahead of me, steady and sure, toward the pack house. He didn’t glance back, didn’t say a word. I followed in silence, a few paces behind, trying not to trip over the fact that my heart was still racing.People watched us as we passed. Warriors paused, then quickly looked away, returning to the grim task of clearing the battlefield—piling rogue bodies, tending to the wounded. I didn’t know if anyone from our side had fallen. I hoped not. But no one was celebrating.Dawn was just beginning to rise, pale light peeking through the trees. The sky was still bruised from the night’s battle.As we reached the pack house, I saw the older women and children—the ones who had been hidden for safety—begin to emerge. They came out hesitantly at first, then faster, many rushing to embrace bloodied warriors who had made it back alive.It was quiet joy. A kind of shaky relief.We stepped inside.Alpha Black led me through the hall and straight into his office on the ground floor. As
“Where the fck is Diva?!*” he roared, eyes glowing fiery red, the shift barely being held back beneath his skin.“She—she stopped me before,” I stammered, “but I came out on my own!”His jaw clenched, nostrils flaring.He grabbed a rogue by the ankle—dragged it backward like a rag doll—then flung it forward with a bone-cracking slam that echoed like thunder. The rogue’s neck snapped on impact.Then he turned back to me.“Stay by my side,” he ordered, voice like gravel and fire.I nodded quickly, heart racing—but in my head, I already knew I had no plans of just standing behind him.I came out to fight.And that is exactly what I will be doing I moved quickly, stepping up beside Alpha Black, close enough to feel the heat rolling off his blood-slicked skin.I didn’t speak.I let Nora rise within me, not fully—just the way we had practiced back in my room. Enough to feel her power run through my veins, but not enough to lose myself completely.My nails sharpened into claws, sleek and cu
Everything froze. For one long, silent moment, the entire world held its breath.Then movement resumed. People rushed past again.Diva stared at the spot where the rogue had vanished, then at me.She shook her head in disbelief, lips parting slightly like she wanted to say something but couldn’t find the words. Then finally, she spoke, urgent and fast:“You have to get back inside. Lock your door. Shut the windows. Alpha Black’s orders.”“But—”“Go, Selene!” she snapped. “There’s no time. We’re under full ambush. Rogues. Dozens of them. They must’ve surrounded the territory before closing in. They’re coming from every side.”Even as she said it, more dark shapes appeared in the distance—shifting and sprinting through the trees.Every instinct in me screamed to stay, to fight. I could feel Nora pushing forward, her power stirring again.“No,” Nora said sharply, her voice colder now. “We can't leave. We fight.”I clenched my fists. “Not now—”“They’re attacking our pack,” she hissed. “Y