Becoming Luna

Selene had become a warrior—one that the Ashen Pack no longer saw as an outsider, but she was still far from claiming true power.

She had proven herself on the battlefield.

Now, she had to prove herself as a ruler.

And that meant facing the most impossible obstacles yet.

Darius, the Alpha of the Ashen Pack, was a force unlike any she had ever encountered.

He had built a kingdom within the wilderness, commanded respect through action, not title.

For Selene to become his chosen Luna—his equal, not his subordinate—she had to prove she could stand beside him, not beneath him.

And that required a test like no other.

She had to do what no other wolf had dared before.

She had to secure wealth beyond the forest.

Because if the Ashen Pack wanted to survive beyond the shadows, they had to stop relying on the land.

And that meant entering the world outside.

Not everyone wanted Selene to rise.

Ava, a Beta who had been vying for the position of Luna long before Selene arrived, saw her as nothing more than a threat that needed to be dealt with.

Through whispered rumors and quiet sabotage, Ava attempted to undermine Selene’s efforts.

She planted false reports of rogue attacks to shift the pack’s focus away from their expansion.

She disrupted trade deals, manipulating contacts to pull out before contracts could be sealed.

She challenged Selene’s authority, forcing public displays of dominance, trying to make her crack under pressure.

But Selene didn’t break.

She adapted, outmaneuvered, and retaliated.

And soon?

Ava realized she wasn’t facing a power-hungry rival.

She was facing a ruler in the making.

Selene knew that to break free from the isolation of the woods, the Ashen Pack needed resources—land, businesses, influence.

And that meant stepping into enemy territory.

The human-run Black River Syndicate, a powerful underground network handling wealth distribution, controlled the trade routes beyond the forest—and they never did business with wolves.

Selene was determined to change that.

She met with Santiago Corvus, the head of the syndicate, in a negotiation room filled with armed guards, knowing that one wrong move could mean her death.

"You have nothing to offer me, wolf," Santiago murmured, swirling his drink, watching her with amusement.

Selene smirked, leaning forward. "Then you clearly don’t know the value of controlling the wilderness."

She laid out a new trade proposition—one that gave the syndicate access to untapped resources hidden deep within Ashen Pack territory.

It was bold. Risky. Dangerous.

But Santiago didn’t laugh.

He listened. Considered. Calculated.

And when he finally smirked, nodding to his second-in-command, the deal was sealed.

The Ashen Pack had secured their first real wealth.

And Selene had proven she could build empires, not just destroy enemies.

Darius had watched her fight.

Had watched her negotiate, manipulate, dominate where others had doubted her.

He had challenged her with obstacles that no ordinary wolf could have survived.

And now?

He saw her victory.

One night, beneath the full moon, he found her standing at the edge of the estate balcony, watching as the Ashen Pack celebrated their new prosperity.

He stood beside her, silent for a moment, before murmuring, "You’ve done what no one else could."

Selene exhaled, smirking. "Did you expect me to fail?"

Darius chuckled, shaking his head. "No. I wanted to see how far you’d push to prove yourself."

Selene turned, locking eyes with him—not as his warrior, not as an outsider, but as his equal.

"And now?"

Darius studied her, measuring everything she had become, before nodding once.

"Now, there is no one else fit to stand beside me."

And with that?

She was his Luna. His equal. The future of the Ashen Pack.