Caitlyn could feel the changes, the slow unraveling of time. It wasn’t just the strange, distant sensations she had been experiencing; it was the gaps. The black holes in her memory. She would be somewhere—somewhere familiar, and yet, she couldn’t remember how she had gotten there. Her feet would take her to places she hadn’t consciously chosen, and yet, they seemed... right. But there was a disconnect.
One moment, she’d be in the garden with Raymond, and the next, she was standing on the edge of the camp, staring out into the darkened horizon, unsure of how she had arrived.
The fragments of memory that floated to her were not her own. Faces. Places. Faint whispers of words that didn’t belong. Was this part of her? Had she been broken, torn in two?
She would search for answers in the mirror, but the reflection didn’t feel like her. It was as if her eyes stared back at her with a knowing that wasn’t hers. Something
The world outside had begun to shift. Strange phenomena spread across the werewolf territories like wildfire, unsettling even the bravest among them. Packmates awoke with disturbing dreams of a wolf they had never seen—its eyes burning crimson, its presence shadowed in mystery. There were reports of wolves howling in unison beneath a blood-red sky, as though answering a call they couldn’t understand. Rivers, once steady and predictable, began running upstream under the cover of night, twisting and turning against nature itself.Caitlyn could feel the change in the air. The world was breaking, and something ancient was clawing its way to the surface. Her wolf, once calm and dormant, had become restless, the once-predictable instincts now unpredictable and sharp. At random moments, Caitlyn found herself in partial shift—her claws elongating, her senses heightening, her control slipping. The power surged through her like a current she couldn’t control, pushing her to the edge, filling he
The sky above Eldoria had never looked like this before. The once-clear blue was now replaced by a deep, crimson hue, casting a bloody glow over the land. It was the first time since the Forsaken War that the sky had burned with such intensity. Lightning cracked sideways, like veins of fire splitting the heavens, while the earth beneath them quaked, sending ripples through the ground.Caitlyn stood at the edge of the camp, watching the storm roll in, her heart racing with the weight of the moment. The First Wolf’s presence was unmistakable—his power was rising, clawing its way toward the surface. But he had not arrived yet. The storm was only the beginning. She could feel him, hear the low growl in the back of her mind, just as she could feel the unease among the wolves. The packs were restless, unsure of what was to come, and they would be harder to rally than ever before.It was time to act.Caitlyn gathered the leaders of the surviving packs for an emergency meeting, the gravity of
Caitlyn and Raymond stood together, the weight of her third mark pressing on her like a storm about to break. The crescent moon, pierced by a single red line, burned on her skin—a mark of something greater than either of them had anticipated. It was a symbol of their bond, yes, but it was more than that. Caitlyn had always thought she was just a bridge between the Moonborn and their legacy, but now she realized—she was the living link between the Moonborn, the Forsaken, and the First Wolf’s forgotten bloodline.As they walked through the camp, heads turned. The pack could feel the shift in the air, the weight of what was happening to her. Caitlyn wasn’t just a leader anymore. She wasn’t just Raymond’s mate. She was a challenge to every power structure that had ever existed. The world was no longer just black and white—it had become shades of gray, and Caitlyn stood in the center of it all, a living embodiment of that grayness.Selene and Bree were waiting for them in the Council chamb
Caitlyn stood, frozen, between the two doors, the weight of her choice pressing down on her like an unbearable burden. The first door, gleaming silver, pulsed with the warmth of everything she had ever known. It was filled with memories—of love, of Raymond, of the life they had built together. The second door, burning red, crackled with raw power, its energy vibrating in the air around her. It offered truth, the chance to become the Alpha of the Beginning, the bridge between worlds, the key to unlocking something far older than even the Moonborn bloodline.The First Wolf stood behind her, his presence looming, suffocating. “Through love, you were broken,” he said, his voice low and predatory. “Through power, you will never be again.”Caitlyn’s heart ached as his words settled in her mind, like a slow poison. She could feel the allure of the red door—the promise of untold strength, of power that would never leave her vulnerable again. It beckoned her, whispering that th
Caitlyn’s eyes fluttered open, and the world around her was nothing like she had ever known. She was no longer in the forest, no longer in the world she had left behind. The air was thick with an ancient energy, and the ground beneath her feet was made of starlight, shimmering and shifting with each step. She felt a chill wash over her, a timeless cold that gnawed at her bones, but it was not uncomfortable. It was... necessary.The First Wolf walked beside her, his massive form casting a shadow that seemed to stretch across time itself. His presence was both oppressive and comforting, a paradox she couldn’t yet understand. He didn’t speak, his gaze focused ahead as they moved through the realm. But Caitlyn could feel his eyes on her, and she knew that every step she took, every breath she drew, was part of a journey she hadn’t chosen—but one she had always been meant to take.Visions began to swirl around her, not in words, but in the form
The forest was silent, save for the whisper of leaves caught in a wind that seemed to come from nowhere, the air thick with something ancient. Caitlyn walked deeper into the woods, the voice from the Hollow Fang still echoing in her mind, pulling her forward. She couldn’t ignore it—not now, not when the call had grown so strong. It was no longer a whisper, but a presence, an invitation. It was the pull of something that felt both wrong and... right.The trees grew thicker as she moved further away from the camp, the path winding and twisting in unnatural ways. She didn’t know how long she had been walking, but time seemed to stretch, the air becoming heavy, charged with dark energy. Her heart beat erratically as she followed the trail—her pulse quickening with every step.She finally arrived at the clearing, where the ruins of a temple lay hidden, overgrown with vines and ancient stone. The ruins were older than Moonborn blood, older than any me