MasukSera“What? What are you apologizing for?”Mina backed away. Her boots scuffed against the rug. I watched her swallow, her throat working hard under the pale skin of her neck. She started shaking her head. It was a rhythmic, frantic motion. None of this made any sense to her. She came low again, crouching so our eyes were level, and she let out a nervous, jagged laugh that died the second it hit the air.“You’re hallucinating, Sera.” Mina’s voice was a forced whisper. She shook her head again, slower this time. “Elder Kael is not dead. I saw him. He was at the main halls today. He walked past the kitchens. He complained about the stew. What do you mean he’s dead?”I swallowed. My mouth tasted of iron and salt. My heart pounded against my ribs, a heavy, dull vibration that I could experience in the tips of my fingers. Dread sat at the bottom of my stomach like a cold stone. I shook my head, my jaw tight.“He is dead, Mina. I was there.”Mina scoffed. She moved closer, her eyes darting
Sera"I'm sorry, Mina.""No, no, no," Mina interrupted. Her voice was soft, but the edge remained. "Don't cry. Oh, please don't do that now."She came low again, watching me closely, as if I were a new creature she needed to understand. She pushed a stray strand of hair away from my forehead, her touch light but lacking any warmth."Growing up," Mina started, her voice taking on a rhythmic, storytelling quality, "the only time I ever saw blood or physical violence was on my mother." She laughed. "Sera, it wasn't a good sight. I spent my nights seeing her in that state. Every night, she was covered in it. And the one thing I always thought about—weirdly—was how I never imagined one person could produce that much blood."Mina shook her head, her dark hair casting long shadows over her shoulders. "I never wanted to see anything like that again. Blood became the one thing I wanted to avoid." She scoffed, her lip curling. "But thanks to you, I got to watch an entire scenario where your mot
Sera"Um... what?"The words hung in the stagnant air of the bedroom. I was shaking. My boots scuffed against the rug, the vibration travelling up my legs and settling in my gut. I swallowed, trying to find enough spit to speak again."I'm pregnant," I repeated. My voice sounded thin, a dry scrape that lacked the Luna's authority I’d been trying to wear. I looked away from her, focusing on a loose thread on her sleeve. "It’s... I’m pregnant, Mina."Mina stayed on the floor with me, her hands still gripping my arms. She nodded slowly, a rhythmic motion that looked more like she was trying to convince herself of a lie. Then her brow pinched."Fenris certainly hasn't been having sex with you for that long, right?" she asked.I nodded, then shook my head, the thoughts tangling. "No. The timing... it's too early." I heard my own voice rise, a sharp, panicked spike. "I should be physically incapable of this! It isn't normal. My body... it doesn't work that way." I took a jagged breath, the
Sera“Your scent, it has changed.”"Since when?"I forced the words past a throat that felt like it had been scraped with a dry stone. I kept my face tight, pulling my brows into a frown of defensive confusion. Fenris didn't let go of my arm. He tilted his head, his nostrils flaring as he drew in another slow, methodical pull of air. His grey eyes were unblinking, the pupils dark and fixed."Since you stepped out of that room," He shook his head slightly. "And it is not the salt, Sera. I know the smell of Madra’s cellar. This... this is different."I swallowed hard. I needed to move. Every second I stood within his reach was another second for his nose to name the truth. "I told you before," I said, my voice gaining a sharper, impatient edge. "I reek of that room. The brine is a stagnant, heavy quality that sticks to the skin. I need a bath. When I am done, the smell will be gone. You’re picking up the leftover filth from that cellar."Fenris sighed, defeated. He certainly knew what
Sera“The brine needs refreshing,” she said, her voice returning to that clinical, detached rasp. “Go. Join your husband. The elders are waiting.”I didn't answer. I didn't offer a smile. I turned and walked out of the room, the iron door heavy against my palm.The corridor was dim. The grease lamps flickered, throwing long, distorted shadows against the stone. I started walking, my heart hammering a rhythm that pounded against my ribs. Every step made the heavy wool of the trousers rub against my thighs. I could perceive the wetness there—not from arousal this time, but from the cold, oily sweat of a different kind of fear.I rounded the corner to the Alpha’s level.Fenris was standing at the end of the hall. He was leaning against the stone archway near the balcony, staring out at the grey morning sky. He still had the black ash on his jaw. He appeared massive, a silhouette of iron and fur that owned the very air he breathed.He heard my boots. He didn't turn around, but I saw his s
Sera"I'm sorry, what?"The laugh that came out of me was a jagged, ugly thing that hit the damp stone walls of the cellar and flatlined. My hand was still trapped in Madra's grip, her fingers like dry, cold bird talons digging into the skin of my wrist. I didn't pull back. I leaned in until I could see the yellowed film over her eyes."The brine is getting to your head, Madra," I said, my voice dropping to a harsh scrape. "I'm barren. My father made that clear years ago. My previous mate confirmed it for three years with every month my body failed to do its job. I am an Omega who couldn't even provide a single heir to a backwater pack. So don't stand there and tell me jokes."Madra didn't flinch. She didn't even blink. She held my stare with a terrifying, clinical stillness."I do not tell jokes, Luna. I deal in the meat and the blood. And your blood is singing a different tune than the one you were told."She tightened her grip. The ache in my wrist was a sharp, localized throb."I
LyraShe ignored me. She dropped to her knees, her hands sliding down to the waistband of my trousers. She shoved her fingers inside the fabric, gripping my hips tight. With one sharp pull, she dragged the pants and my underwear down to my ankles. I stepped out of them, kicking my boots off in the
Sera“What just happened?”"Forced healing takes fuel," Yvara explained. She paced in front of me. "It pulls energy directly from your reserves. It burns calories at a massive rate. In a battle of attrition, this will keep you alive, but it will also kill you if you aren't careful. You just got the
FenrisThe leather bag was old. It was cracked in several places, leaking thin streams of sand onto the stone floor every time I hit it. The heavy chains groaned, a high-pitched metallic scrape that echoed in the small, windowless space. This was the belly of the mountain, a place the torches barel
SeraNight fell fast, and with it, the temperature plummeted. We had three fires going, but the heat didn't seem to travel more than six inches past the flames. I sat on a log by the middle fire, pulling the wagon fur around my shoulders, shivering so hard my teeth were literally clicking together.







