CHAPTER 4

The Red Moon Pack is one of the largest packs in the country. But of all the packs in the world, none have ever been gifted the Blue Wolf.

Thousands of years ago, a man was blessed with the spirit of the legendary Blue Wolf, Aamon—the very first werewolf to ever exist. The name did not signify control over fire or water, nor did it grant him the ability to wield elements with his hands. Instead, his wolf form was unlike any other. His fur, streaked with brilliant flecks of blue, radiated both beauty and strength.

But his true gift lay in something far more extraordinary—he was fireproof. No flame could harm him, and when he ignited a fire, it transformed into something far more powerful: the Blue Flame—a mystical fire that could never be extinguished unless he willed it so.

Legend says that he was once a normal human until his entire family was burned alive before his eyes. He watched as his mother, father, brothers, and sisters screamed in agony, their flesh consumed by the flames. Chained in front of them, he was unable to move, unable to utter a word, and unable to look away. They called out to him, begging to be saved, but he could do nothing except watch them burn until the very end.

And that was not all. He witnessed his pregnant wife and their four-year-old child being thrown into the fire, reduced to ashes before his eyes. Soon after, he was released from his chains, and in his grief, he ran into the flames to die with his family.

But death did not claim him. Instead, he was revived as the Blue Wolf. Consumed by vengeance, he set the entire place ablaze and watched as the fire engulfed his enemies. The flames burned for an entire year. And then, he vanished. No one knew how other werewolves came into existence after his disappearance. However, all of this was recorded by a child named Ted, the only survivor of the massacre. He was spared by the Blue Wolf because he had been the only friend of the werewolf’s child—the one who had burned to ashes. No one knew what became of Aamon the Blue Wolf the first werewolf in history, but it was said that it was the man's hatred that revived him and that such hatred was the requirement for one to be gifted the Blue Wolf.

The Blue Flame, a mystical fire known for its ability to sever mate bonds, earned its name from its striking ocean-blue hue. Its creator, the legendary Blue Wolf, was known by many simply by that title.

This very flame was the same one he had unleashed upon the nobles who had mercilessly slaughtered his entire family. It burned with vengeance, consuming everything in its path. Yet, it was never fully extinguished. Even after centuries, a small remnant of it—no larger than a burning hut—continued to burn, an eternal reminder of the wrath and sorrow that birthed it.

One day, a werewolf couple stumbled upon the flames and, intrigued by their seemingly eternal existence, chose to live nearby. Curious as to why the fire never faded despite having no fuel to sustain it, they dared to touch it. To their shock, it did not burn them. Emboldened, they stood in the middle of the flames, mesmerized by their glow, until suddenly, a searing pain tore through their chests. The agony lasted for hours or even days. When it finally subsided, they fled from the fire—only to realize they could no longer feel the mate bond that had once tied them together.

Over time, werewolves came to understand the true power of the Blue Flame. The place where it still burns became known as Severance Haven, a sacred ground now overseen by the Royal Family.

Any couple seeking to sever their mate bond must pay a steep price to gain access to the flame, for its power is not given freely. However, there exists one bond even the Blue Flame cannot break—a mark placed by a shifter of the Royal bloodline. Once claimed by royalty, no force, not even the eternal fire, can undo the connection.

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Cassandra, who heard Joana's weak voice in her head, was brought back to reality. She had been lost in thoughts about how she and James started dating, about how he cared for her, loved her, and ultimately betrayed her.

She immediately looked around, only to realize how deep in the forest she had wandered. She bit her lip, suddenly remembering that Joana didn’t know how to fight. Joana had a weak constitution for a werewolf and was never allowed to fight.

"F**k! Joana!" Cassandra shouted as she sprinted back to where she had left her.

When Cassandra arrived, she froze at the sight. Joana was lying on the ground, soaked in her blood. A huge black wolf stood over her, biting her leg, attempting to drag her body deeper into the woods.

"LET HER GO, YOU F**KER!" Cassandra yelled, jumping into the air and landing on all fours. She had shifted into her wolf form.

She lunged at the black wolf so quickly that it didn’t even have time to dodge. Cassandra slashed its throat, and the black wolf fell to the ground, gasping for air. It couldn’t fight back—it wasn’t a match for Cassandra.

The wolf had actually been aiming for Cassandra, but when her wolf's aura surged with rage over the news of James’s betrayal, it sent a chill down the black wolf's spine. Terrified, it had switched its target to Joana instead.

After a few moments, the black wolf stopped struggling. Its eyes were wide open, staring straight at Cassandra, but it no longer moved or made any sound. It was dead.

Cassandra quickly took Joana and ran toward the pack's hospital, desperate. When she arrived, the sight of Joana’s condition shocked everyone, but they immediately rushed her to the emergency room.

"WHAT HAPPENED?" Scott came running after hearing the news from the hospital.

"Joana... She was attacked by a rogue." Cassandra said, worry written all over her face.

"WHAT? HOW DID THAT HAPPEN? WHERE WERE YOU?" Scott asked, pacing back and forth.

"I was so lost in thought that I had no idea I’d walked so deep into the woods. I forgot about her..." Cassandra lowered her head in guilt.

"How could you leave her alone? Do you know her condition? How could you be so irresponsible?"

"I'm sorry, I-"

PAK!

Cassandra was cut off when her brother's palm landed hard on her face.

He slapped her.

"LEAVE CASSANDRA! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU!"

"Broth-"

"What happened? I came as soon as I heard the news."

Cassandra looked at the person who had arrived. He was with a beautiful woman, holding her hand.

"You're back?" Cassandra said, her eyes drifting from him to the woman beside him.

James looked at Cassandra in shock, then looked at the woman beside him, holding her hand tightly.

"Yes, I'm back, and I brought my mate with me." He said, as though nothing had happened, as if he hadn’t just betrayed her.

"How could you do this to me, James? Do you have no shame, coming here with your b**ch?" Cassandra was outraged. So much had already happened today, and now she couldn’t control her anger.

"I know I hurt you, but how dare you say that about her? We were never meant to be together in the first place! You have no right to act like this!" James said angrily.

"How dare you say that to my face, after telling me you would never choose your mate over me? Do you want to die?" Cassandra slammed James against the wall, making the woman beside him fall. She was choking him.

"What are you doing? LET GO OF HIM!" The woman screamed.

She lunged toward Cassandra, but before she could even lay a finger on her, Cassandra kicked her, still choking James, which made the woman curl in pain and groan.

"CASSANDRA, STOP IT!" Scott shouted, but Cassandra couldn’t hear him. She was consumed by her anger and set on killing James.

Scott tried to separate Cassandra from James, but he too was sent flying.

"Aghhhh!!!" Melissa, James’s mate, screamed. Blood dripped from her legs.

"N...o!! M-M... Ellis...." James said weakly.

Then, Cassandra felt an intense heat in her abdomen. It burned.

"Urghhh!!" Cassandra cried out, dropping James as his eyes rolled back in his head.

Cassandra glanced at her side and saw her blood gushing out. She looked at James, her heart breaking more than it ever had before.

James had stabbed her with a silver knife. He didn’t even look at her; he immediately crawled to Melissa.

Meanwhile, the doctors and warriors surrounded them, helping Scott, Melissa, and James. But no one cared about Cassandra.

She struggled to maintain her balance, though she felt like her knees would give out due to the pain. She took a shaky step away, holding her still-bleeding wound, looking pale and weak.

"How could she do that? How despicable! I always thought she was a righteous person."

"Shhh!! She might hear you," one of the nurses said.

Cassandra looked toward them, and they immediately turned away.

"Hah! I’ll always be the bad guy in this place," she muttered to herself.

She left for the pack house, treating herself as best as she could. Her fever was sky-high. She lay in bed with tears streaming down her face, hoping that when she woke up, everything would go back to how it was.

Suddenly, the door was slammed open, and a pair of hands dragged her down to the basement, where criminals were locked up.

"Where are you taking me?" Cassandra asked weakly, her voice drowsy.

"Shut up!" The man threw her into the cell. The impact caused her stomach wound to start bleeding again.

Cassandra gritted her teeth, enduring the pain. She couldn’t fight back due to her injury and fever, so she closed her eyes, accepting whatever might come.

"Do you know how many lives you’ve taken today?" Scott said, grabbing her by the hair.

"What?" She asked, shocked.

Her mind raced, and she started shaking violently.

"Brother, did Joana...?"

She was cut off when she felt another surge of burning pain in her leg.

"URGHH!" Cassandra cried out. Scott had stabbed her leg with a syringe filled with wolfsbane.

"ARGHHHH!!!!!!!!!" After the wolfsbane entered her body, Cassandra couldn’t stop screaming in pain.

Wolfsbane was extremely lethal to werewolves, and Scott knew Cassandra’s tolerance was high, so he made sure to inject her with far more than a regular werewolf could endure, ensuring her suffering.

"Brother, why?" She sobbed.

"Do you even need to ask? You don’t deserve an easy life after killing mine and Joana's child. And you’re not satisfied with just one life—you killed James's child as well!" Scott said with disgust.

"Why do you hate me so much? What have I ever done to you? You know all too well none of it was my fault!" She grabbed his leg as he was about to leave, but she was still lying on the dirty floor.

"What a useless question! I won’t waste my time explaining why I hate you. Just look at yourself to know!"

After that, Scott left her in the cold cell with her wound bleeding and her leg burning like hell.

She touched her leg and cried out as she realized she could no longer feel it.

"No, no..." She muttered before succumbing to the darkness.