Riven clapped his hand and maids appeared,clearing the shattered glasses while quickly bringing in a new one. He handed over the dress he chose for her.
The silk robe slid over her body like liquid dusk.
Deep crimson, trimmed in black fur, fitted to her curves but regal enough to demand obedience. Her skin was still warm from the bath, and though her throat no longer glowed, the phantom ache of the mark pulsed beneath the silk collar stitched to hide it.
Riven adored her body with his eyes,he watched her face from the new mirror that had been set,then she looked up to meet his gaze, the silence between them buzzed.
“Your throne room is being prepared,” he said, voice low. “They await their Queen.”
Raya gave a slight nod, sliding her fingers through her damp hair. “How many are assembled?”
“More than usual. Word of your success traveled fast.”
She caught his tone,measured, but proud.
She didn’t respond.
Victory should have tasted sweet. But all she felt was a strange emptiness beneath her ribs. As if something had been taken from her in that wild night... and something else had been left behind.
She stepped out into the corridor, head high, eyes hard. The scent of burning pine filled the halls,an ancient tradition for returning alphas. Her footsteps echoed off the stone floor as she approached the towering arched doors of the throne room.
Two guards flanked the entrance, fists to chests in salute. The doors swung open.
And the room fell silent.
Every head bowed.
Every knee bent.
Her wolves, her court, her soldiers. Cloaked in furs, polished armor, tribal beads and war paint. They knelt as one, eyes averted.
A sea of loyalty.
But all Raya could feel was the weight of her own pulse in her throat.
She moved slowly through the aisle, the robe trailing behind her like flowing blood. The throne,a towering obsidian seat wrapped in bone and carved vines,stood at the far end, raised above the court. Her steps never faltered.Their headaches were down till she climbed up the stairs and sat on her throne.
Riven stood by the base of the platform. He offered his hand without a word, and she took it.
When she ascended and sat, the court rose with a thunderous sound,howls, chants, pounding of fists to chests.
“Glory to the Alpha Queen!”
“Daughter of Moon and Fire!”
“Breaker of Bloodlines!”
The titles rang through the hall like scripture, passed from warrior to warrior, reverberating in the bones of the mountain.
She lifted her chin. Cold. Beautiful. Unshakable.
Until they began to bring the spoils.
First came the weapons, blades laced in silver, taken from the enemy’s dead.
Then the armors, shattered chest plates, smeared with blood as proof of victory.
Next came the banners,ripped and scorched, the sigils of fallen houses dragged across the stone floor like defeated ghosts.
And finally, the prisoners.
Half a dozen rogues knelt in chains, heads bowed.
Her eyes passed over them like frost.
Her court bowed again. The high war priest stepped forward, ancient and twisted, wrapped in ceremonial furs and bone jewelry. His voice echoed loud.
“The Queen returns triumphant. The land is blood-bound again. But there is still a shadow.”
Raya narrowed her gaze.
“Speak.”
He opened a scroll. “There are whispers of poison,seeping through water, through air. Not made by our kind. Something older. Something foreign. And some say… something called.”
The court murmured. Raya stilled them with a raised hand.
“Where?”
“In the western riverlands. Near the border you crossed, my Queen.”
Her stomach clenched.
Of course.
Of course.
She rose from the throne, robe rustling, descending the steps with quiet command. The war priest moved aside, revealing a low table set with a single item.
“What is that?” She asked…
“A little something we need to show you,” replied an elder.
A large picture was covered with a veil.
It glowed faintly blue.
“The water that is cursed,” he said. “This is all we could extract. The healers say the land resists cleansing.”
“And the antidote?” she asked.
The priest didn’t answer.
Riven stepped forward, gaze locked on her.
“There is one,” he said quietly. “But… you must see it yourself.”
Raya frowned.
The veil was lifted,”what the…”
And then she saw it.
Not on the table.
Not in the room.
But in her mind.
The air rippled.
Her knees buckled.
Riven lunged to catch her, but the world was already fading.
She was standing in the woods again.
Naked.
Moonlight poured over her skin like liquid ice.
And he was there.
The rogue.
The man from the night.
He stood barefoot in the grass, surrounded by silver mist. His eyes glowed pale blue. His hair hung damp around his face. No scars this time. No blood.
Only a strange stillness.
She took a step toward him. Her breath steamed in the air.
“You shouldn’t be here,” she said.
“I never left you,” he replied, voice deep and echoing in the bones of the dream.
“You don’t belong to me.”
His lips curved into a soft, haunted smile. “Don’t I?”
She trembled. Her body remembered him. Her soul ached.
He stepped closer.
She felt it,the warmth rising again in her throat. The same mark. But now… it glowed.
He reached toward her.
She didn’t flinch.
When his fingers touched the spot just below her collarbone, her breath hitched. Her knees went weak. But then he vanished.
She was alone now,in a huge hole of darkness,every inch was quiet,she had no idea if she was standing or floating.
“You were meant to lead,” something whispered against her skin. “But something else is waking in you.”
She looked around and saw no one and the voice came again,like a motherly voice but laced with something dangerous.
“Welcome home, my love. Do what you must,I'm waiting.”
She gasped as a palm pressed flat against her chest,and suddenly a surge of heat slammed through her, too fast, too wild.
Light burst behind her eyes.
Everything vanished.
Raya's body hit the floor of the throne room, unconscious.
Gasps echoed across the court. Riven was at her side in a flash, cradling her head, shouting for the healers. The vial of blue poison shattered nearby, rolling across the stone.
And on her throat,hidden by silk but visible just for a moment,a mark glowed like silver fire beneath her skin.
*Humphrey And Raya*Raya didn’t say anything.The primal wilderness around them stretched in every direction,wild and ancient, a realm alive with strange winds and unblinking eyes. The forest hummed with power that felt too sentient. Like it knew they didn’t belong. Like it was watching.He stood up to his feet and he surveyed the clearing, lips pressed in a hard line, jaw ticking.“We’ll need what to sleep on,the rocks are too hard,” he muttered.Raya didn’t answer immediately. Her fingers brushed over the moss-covered bark of a nearby tree, feeling how the damp earth vibrated beneath her boots.A low thrum curled in her stomach. The bond.He was too close again. Always too close.“Any brilliant wolf ideas?” she said, finally.He shot her a glance. “Don’t start with me, sweetheart.”She glared.“Don’t call me that.”“We both know you're a sweetheart,especially to me.”She didn’t answer. He stalked off into the trees to gather branches and some moss.Raya let out a slow breath, closi
Riven’s POVI’ve never liked pacing. It makes me feel restless and weak. But tonight, I can't stop.The corridor outside Raya’s chambers is silent. The torches along the walls flicker softly, casting shadows that feel too long, too hollow. My boots echo faintly on the polished stone, but I barely hear them. My mind is a storm.Raya is gone.Again.And this time, I don’t know where she went.What makes me so mad is the fact that shr vanished…With him.I clench my fists.Humphrey!!.The very name makes my throat tighten. My stomach turns thinking about her with him. It doesn’t matter how many times I tell myself that she’s strong, that she’s capable,that she’s Raya,our Alpha,our Queen. That man has always been a storm to her flame. Dangerous. Unstable. And too damned close.I run a hand through my hair, frustrated. How could she leave with him? How could she not know how much that tears me apart?I stop pacing, bracing both hands on the stone window ledge. Outside, the moon is high and
The air around them seemed to breathe again. The tension between them loosened,but it didn’t disappear. It only simmered beneath the surface, like fire tucked into coals.He glanced up toward the sky.The colors above were deepening. The glowing constellations were shifting into twilight tones, and the once-warm breeze was turning cooler, edged with whispers.“Nightfall’s coming,” he said quietly.Raya folded her arms, her face unreadable. “So?”He raised an eyebrow. “So, unless you want to freeze to death under starfire winds, we need to find shelter. This realm might be beautiful—but it’s still dangerous.”She rolled her eyes, sighed dramatically, then waved him forward. “Lead the way, oh wise one.”“Weren't you the one fed fairy tales about this place by mom?. Let's see if you paid attention,lead the way, sweetheart.”She smirked but said nothing. The two of them began walking again, deeper into the heart of the celestial forest, side by side but not quite together.They walked in
As Raya walked,something about it made her uneasy. Something she couldn't explain.“Raya?” Humphrey called behind her, tone cautious.She didn’t answer. She just kept on walking.He sighed and followed.They left the glowing tide and entered the heart of the celestial realm. Grass whispered beneath their feet. Strange trees arched above them, tall and knotted with bark that shimmered like onyx. The air was thick with floating spores that lit the shadows like stars trapped in motion.“I’m not going in there,” she said finally, eyes forward.“I didn’t think you would,” Humphrey replied simply.The silence stretched as they walked. Step after step. No guards. No enemies. Just the strange serenity of a world that didn’t belong to either of them. This place felt magical and it was nothing like her kingdom.Raya’s fists clenched. She was battling something within her.Humphrey watched her.“You okay?” he asked.She scoffed. “Do I look okay?”He gave a half-smile. “You look pissed. Which mea
The air was silent.A soft wind blew against the golden sands, carrying the scent of wild roses and ocean mist. The sky above was endless, a shimmering cascade of swirling constellations,more alive than any sky they had ever known. Time itself seemed to hum beneath the stars. It felt like they were in a Barbie world.Humphrey landed first.Hard.Flat on his back, with a heavy grunt, sand puffing up around him in a golden cloud.A split second later, Raya fell right on top of him.Her body landed across his chest, knocking the breath from his lungs.Her hair spilled down like waves of midnight silk, tangling in his face. Her knees pressed into his sides, her hands against the warm sand as she groaned.Raya’s eyes fluttered open, disoriented. “Ugh…” she muttered, blinking against the brightness. “What the hell…?”She lifted her head,and froze.Humphrey’s face was directly beneath hers, his expression caught between shock and amusement.She remembered that one time when they were in this
While the magic carried Raya and Humphrey far beyond mortal reach, chaos simmered just beneath the palace’s surface.Thalira sat on the council room ledge, one leg swung lazily over the other, her bow resting against her hip. The stranger,still unnamed,stood at the center of the chamber, arms bound loosely behind him, his eyes flicking between her and the pacing Alpha beside her.Riven had worn a line into the polished stone with his boots. Back and forth. Again and again. His brows were furrowed, jaw clenched, tension in his every movement.“She’s getting unstable,” Riven muttered.Thalira arched her brow. “You just noticed?”“I mean it, Thalira. That scream in the woods? It wasn’t just power. It was something ancient. Her eyes, her voice... she didn’t sound like Raya anymore.”Thalira glanced at the stranger, then stood and slowly approached him. She tilted her head like a cat sizing up prey. He was taller than her, but there was a nervous twitch in his jaw that amused her.“So,” sh