My phone buzzed again—another message from my agency's crisis management team. The video hadn't hit mainstream media yet, but it was spreading through private channels, gathering attention in places that made my skin crawl. Places where people knew what they were really seeing.I stared at my laptop screen, watching the footage that could destroy everything. The quality was poor, deliberately distorted, but anyone who knew what to look for would see it. Me, in the Silver Claw arena. The shift. The fight. Someone had edited it to look like a leaked special effects test, a marketing stunt gone wrong. But the wrong people would know better.'At least they got your good side,' Rona commented. 'Though seriously, what's with the fake CGI overlay? Like anyone's buying that.'"Not helping," I muttered, reading another urgent email from the agency. They were already preparing cover stories: viral marketing campaign, performance art piece, anything to keep the truth buried.Angela stirred in th
Getting out of Manhattan was a blur of broken glass and silver blades. Bella's chemical-enhanced wolves had torn through Veronica's office like a storm, but they hadn't expected me to jump. Twenty stories up, and I'd grabbed Angela, crashed through a window, and landed on the adjacent building's fire escape. Not my most elegant escape, but as Rona helpfully pointed out, we didn't die.'Though next time,' she grumbled as I drove us out of the city, 'maybe don't jump off buildings with the bitchy sister who tried to kill us. Just a thought.'"She's leverage," I reminded her, checking the rearview mirror for pursuit.'She's dead weight,' Rona countered. 'And if she makes one more smug comment about your modeling career being over, I vote we use her as a speed bump.'Angela sat silently in the backseat, but her smirk said enough. The handcuffs were reinforced with silver now—a gift from Veronica's surprisingly well-stocked weapons cabinet. Questions for another time.My phone rang. Silas.
Blood still dripped from my nose, silver instead of red. The Moon Goddess's words echoed in my skull as the pack hall erupted in chaos around me.'Well, that was dramatic,' Rona commented. 'A goddess shows up and suddenly everyone loses their minds.'She wasn't wrong. The elders were shouting over each other, the rogues were still kneeling, and Silas—still on the ground where I'd put him—stared at me like he was seeing a ghost."Your eyes," he said quietly. "They're silver."I reached up, feeling warmth trickle down my cheeks. Not tears. Blood."The ritual site," I said. The certainty hit me like a physical blow. "I need to go to the ritual site. Now."'Bad idea,' Rona warned. 'Very bad idea.'But I was already moving. The underground temple called to me, a pull I couldn't ignore. Footsteps behind me told me Silas was following."Stella, wait—""Either help me or stay out of my way," I snapped, not slowing down. "I just beat you in front of your pack. Don't make me do it again."'I vo
The first of Viktor's altered wolves cleared our barrier with impossible speed. Its body was wrong—limbs too long, joints bending backwards, skin rippling as partial shifts cascaded across its form. One of our guards, raised his silver-loaded rifle and fired. The bullet hit center mass.The creature didn't even flinch."It's not stopping," He said, backing up. "Why isn't it—"The altered wolf's jaw unhinged, splitting its face in half. Before Mark could fire again, it had him. Teeth sank into his shoulder, through the tactical vest like it was paper. But it didn't just bite—it started shifting while its mouth was full of Mark's flesh. Fangs extended, retracted, extended again, shredding meat from bone.Mark's scream cut off in a gurgle.'Well, that's new,' Rona commented grimly. 'And disgusting. Can we kill it now?'Three more guards opened fire. Silver bullets tore through the creature's body, but it kept eating, kept shifting. Only when they finally hit its brain did it collapse.Bu
The temple stairs were slick with blood. Three of Viktor's rejects had followed us down, their bodies contorting as they moved. One's spine cracked audibly with each step, vertebrae pushing through skin before being dragged back in.'Stop admiring the freaks and kill them,' Rona growled.I shifted—not full wolf, just what I needed. Claws extended as I met the first one. It lunged with too many teeth in a jaw that split four ways. I ducked under its strike, drove my claws up through its throat and into its brain. No healing from that.Silas took the second one with a silver blade to the eye. But the third—the third got past us. It caught one of Kane's men who'd followed us down. We watched as it literally pulled him apart, its muscles shifting and multiplying as it tore.The sound of Viktor's approach cut through the man's screams. His footsteps were wrong, arrhythmic. Like he was shifting with each step."Little Stella," his voice echoed down the stairs. "Always running to the temple.
Angela's blood spread across the temple floor, mixing with the silver light from the ritual platform. The black chemicals in her system made it steam where it touched stone.'Finish it,' Rona urged, her voice straining as the ritual pulled at our connection. 'Before he—'Viktor's laugh cut her off. The sound rattled out like breaking glass. His body convulsed, muscles bulging and splitting his skin as he grew. Eight legs burst from his torso—four wolf, four human, bent at unnatural angles. His chest split vertically, revealing a second mouth lined with both fangs and human teeth. His original head remained, but the skin had peeled back, leaving exposed muscle that pulsed and shifted. Three more wolf heads emerged from his shoulders, their snouts too long, jaws unhinging to show tongues that writhed like snakes. Yellow eyes opened across his body—in his chest, along his arms, between the joints of his legs. Black veins spread from the injection ports in his neck, carrying chemicals tha
(Stella Harrison) The world burned in silence. At least, that’s how it felt as I stumbled through the wreckage of what had once been Blood Moon territory. My ears still rang from the cacophony of battle—snarls, screams, the wet tear of flesh—but now there was only ash and the metallic tang of blood clotting in the air. My blood. Silver and red streaked my arms, crusted under my nails, a reminder of what I’d lost. Rona. Her absence carved a hollow ache in my chest, like someone had reached in and ripped out a lung. I kept waiting for her voice to slice through the quiet, some crude joke or biting remark about the state of my hair. But there was nothing. Just the wind whistling through shattered windows and the distant wail of sirens. Humans were coming. I’d seen the helicopters first, their spotlights cutting through the smoke like accusing fingers. Then the phones—dozens of them, held aloft by trembling hands from rooftops and shattered cars. Cameras zoomed in on the aftermath: Vik
The frost on the windows glowed blue in the predawn light, jagged crystals clawing at the glass like skeletal fingers. I hadn’t slept. Couldn’t. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw it again—the True Enemy’s void-black gaze, Viktor’s melting flesh, Silas’s blood pooling on temple stone. The fire had died hours ago, leaving the cabin air sharp with pine resin and the metallic tang of my own sweat. Andrea’s ghost flickered by the hearth, her form wavering between corporeal and smoke. She’d been silent since materializing, those moonlit eyes tracking my every twitch. I hated how she looked at me—like I was still the scrawny kid who’d cried when her first shift tore open her palms. I snapped first. “Where were you?” The words tore free, raw and serrated. Andrea’s spectral shoulders stiffened. “Stella—” “When he locked me in the cellar for three days after my first failed shift? When he sold me to that fur trader from the Iron Claw pack because I was ‘defective’?” My voice climbed, scra
I showered again, hotter this time, as if I could wash away the implications of what had just happened. The bond had needed release—that much was true. The supernatural tension had been building since the silver integration, threatening our focus, our control.But it wasn't just the bond. And pretending otherwise was a lie neither of us fully believed.I dressed in practical clothes for the briefing, hair still damp, silver lines faded but not gone. The pendant at my throat seems warmer now, responding to whatever changes were accelerating in my blood.The briefing room was crowded—remaining coalition representatives, pack fighters, medical teams. Silas stood at the head of the table, composed and focused as if nothing had happened between us. Only the bond betrayed him, humming with awareness whenever our eyes met."The situation has changed," he began without preamble. "Red River and Pine Valley have withdrawn from the coalition. Shadow Ridge is wavering. We must adjust accordingly.
The bathroom mirror showed the toll of recent days—dark circles under my eyes, fading bruises from the perimeter fight, silver lines visible beneath my skin even at rest now. I looked like what I was becoming—something between wolf and weapon, neither fully human nor fully monster.The hot water helped, washing away blood and tension. I stayed under the spray until my skin pruned, letting the steam fill my lungs, blanking my mind. Temporary peace.It shattered when I stepped out to find Silas sitting on the edge of my bed."What the hell?" I clutched the towel tighter around me. "Ever heard of knocking?""I did. Three times." He didn't look away. "We have a situation.""Serious enough to invade my bathroom?""Pine Valley's pulling out too."That got my attention. "What? When?""Just now. Chen called. Same story as Red River—Logan made contact, offered terms, council voted.""Fuck." I sat heavily beside him, maintaining careful distance despite the emergency. "That's two packs in one d
Blood spattered across my face as I drove my knife into the hybrid's throat. Not a killing blow—these fuckers were resilient—but enough to buy me seconds. I twisted the silver blade, widening the wound, before kicking it back into the trees."Six o'clock," Silas called.I spun, dropping to one knee as another hybrid lunged overhead. It landed awkwardly, and I slashed across its hamstrings before it could recover. The silver blade cut through enhanced muscle and tendon, sending it crashing to the forest floor.The perimeter breach had turned out to be a scouting party—four hybrids, two human handlers with tactical gear. Test run, most likely. Probing our defenses before the eclipse."Clear on the east," Mason's voice crackled through the radio. "Two neutralized.""South perimeter clear," another voice confirmed.I finished the wounded hybrid with a knife through the eye socket—the most reliable way to kill them, we'd discovered. Silver to the brain. Nothing else stuck.Silas approached
A heavy silence fell. The widow studied me, weighing my words against her grief. Finally, she nodded once—not acceptance, not yet, but willingness to listen.The demonstration continued—questions answered, abilities explained, strategy discussed. By the end, the mood had shifted from hostile skepticism to grim determination. Not unity, exactly, but something approaching common purpose.Reeves declared the gathering concluded. The pack dispersed slowly, many lingering to catch glimpses of the silver lines beneath my skin, or to hear fragments of conversation between their Alpha and me."You've made an impression," Reeves observed when we were relatively alone. "Whether good or bad remains to be seen.""As long as you hold to the timeline.""We will. For now." He studied me with that predatory gaze. "You're not what I expected, Luna Stella.""What did you expect?""Someone broken by rejection. Someone defined by her mate bond rather than her own strength." He inclined his head slightly—
The meeting dragged for hours—strategies dissected, contingencies argued, egos managed. By the time it ended, I had barely enough time to prepare for the Shadow Ridge visit.I found Bella in the library, surrounded by ancient texts and modern printouts. The bags under her eyes suggested she hadn't slept much."Any updates on the ritual site?" I asked.She shook her head. "Surveillance shows continued construction, but no major changes to the chamber layout. The central platform appears to be complete." She slid a satellite photo toward me. "They've added these structures around the perimeter—power conduits, possibly, or some kind of containment system.""For the hybrids?""For you." She met my eyes. "Logan's preparing for your capture, Stella. These modifications match historical descriptions of goddess blood containment."Of course. He'd be a fool not to plan for every contingency, including my capture."We need to adjust our approach vector," I said. "Avoid these areas.""Already do
My blood wasn't right anymore.I stared at the vial Zeta Ruth had drawn that morning, watching how it separated—normal red plasma on bottom, silver particulates floating on top, refusing to mix. Like oil and water, except both were parts of me now."The integration is stable," Zeta Ruth reported, studying her microscope. "No cellular deterioration, no rejection symptoms. Whatever you did when you saved Silas, it fundamentally altered your blood composition.""Great," I muttered. "Logan will be thrilled."Three days since the assassination attempt. Three days of tests, meetings, and preparation. The coalition was holding, but barely—territorial disputes and ancient grievances threatening the fragile alliance with each passing hour."Have you experienced any side effects?" Zeta Ruth asked. "Pain, weakness, unusual sensations?"Besides feeling like my insides were made of broken glass? "Nothing significant."She gave me a look that said she knew I was lying. "The silver isn't just in you
The formal dining room hadn't been used in years. Dust sheets covered the long mahogany table, and cobwebs decorated the chandelier. I stood in the doorway, watching pack members clean and polish under Mason's direction."The Shadow Ridge delegation arrives at noon," Silas said, appearing beside me. "Mountain Creek by three. Red River just confirmed—they'll be here before sunset.""Seven alphas in one room." I crossed my arms. "When's the last time that happened?""1962. The Silver Plague outbreak." He glanced at me. "You ready for this?""Define ready."The corner of his mouth twitched. "Able to navigate pack politics without starting a war.""Then no, probably not."He almost smiled—a rare occurrence these days. The approaching eclipse had everyone on edge, humor in short supply."They'll test you," he warned. "Your authority, your bloodline, your right to stand beside me. Traditional alphas don't adapt quickly to change.""I noticed." I gestured to my training clothes. "Should I ch
The council meeting that night was grim. Bella took notes as we described what we'd witnessed, her face growing paler with each detail."Forced conversion," she murmured. "He's found a way to override the rejection response.""At what cost?" I demanded. "That wolf was being torn apart from the inside.""The cost doesn't matter to Logan," Silas said. "Only the result.""We can't let this happen," Mason declared. "The eclipse ritual—if he perfects this process, makes it permanent...""He'll have an army of controllable hybrids," I finished. "Each one as strong as three normal wolves, immune to silver, loyal only to him.""So we stop him," Eliza said, steel in her voice despite her lingering grief. "We hit the quarry before the eclipse. Destroy his lab, free the captives.""It's not that simple," Silas cautioned. "The quarry is a fortress now. We'd lose half the pack trying to breach it.""Then we need another approach," I said. All eyes turned to me. "Logan wants me. My blood. I'm the k
The quarry lay in a natural depression, surrounded by pine forest and abandoned mining equipment. From our vantage point on the ridge, I could see the extent of Logan's modifications—new structures, camouflaged entrances, subtle signs of extensive underground construction."They've been busy," Eliza whispered, her enhanced vision picking out details in the growing darkness.Marcus crouched beside her, scanning the perimeter. He'd barely looked at me during the journey, maintaining a careful distance that spoke of either respect or fear. Possibly both."Guards at all access points," he reported. "But they're focused outward. Not expecting approach from above.""The main entrance leads to a vertical shaft," Silas said, consulting hand-drawn maps from the previous reconnaissance. "Elevators down to the primary chamber.""Too exposed," I noted. "Alternative routes?""Old mining tunnels." He pointed to a cluster of buildings near the quarry's edge. "They connect to the main chamber from mu