1. Wolfless Omega of Ambercrest Pack

BELISARA'S POV

Everyone in Ambercrest Pack loved my father, Alpha Berengar.

He was a legend, a fierce, unstoppable warrior but his untimely death on the battlefield tore a hole in our pack that never truly healed.

I was his only child, heiress to the Ambercrest throne and tonight, I'd be crowned Luna.

All I had to do was shift into my Golden Wolf.

I stared blankly at my reflection in the mirror. My blonde hair was tied into french twists, my curves outlined my white ceremonial dress but I struggled to keep my spine straight.

I was bigger, softer and more delicate than the she-wolves in the pack.

But my father always reminded me; a Luna's worth wasn't weighed by her size, but by her heart.

I hoped to the Moon Goddess that my Golden Wolf be majestic enough to impress the elders at my coronation tonight.

My bedroom door clicked open and my auntie, Morwena, glided inside.

She carried a small chalice in her hands, and smiled sweetly at me but something about her eyes made me feel like a caged insect under a magnifying glass.

"Oh, my sweet Belisara," She stepped closer and lifted my chin up. "Look at you. You're shaking like a leaf."

"I'm just nervous." I whispered, brushing my moist palms against my dress. "What if I can't do it? What if my golden wolf doesn't come out?"

"What nonsense are you saying? Here drink this." She pressed the chalice to my hands. "It's a herbal tonic to clear your mind and settle the flutter in your chest."

The tonic inside the chalice was dark, thick and smelt really odd but I didn't want to doubt her remedy so I raised it to my lips and swallowed the mixture.

"Ugh—" I nearly threw up as it tasted horrible like grinded ashes and mold.

"Make sure you drink it all." Morwena held the chalice to my lips.

A strange feeling washed over me as the tonic didn't warm my belly or soothe my nerves.

Instead, a biting cold spread out my throat.

The cold coursed through my veins, rushed to my chest and completely froze it over.

Morwena watched me intently, her gaze locked on my throat as I swallowed the last drop.

When the chalice was empty, she took it from my numb fingers and patted me gently on the head.

"All done," She smiled sweetly again.

Suddenly, the rhythmic thud of the ceremonial drums echoed around us and the deep vibrations rattled my teeth.

Morwena laughed dryly, a sound that made my skin crawl. "Will you listen to that? It's time for your fate to be decided, my dear."

I exhaled a shaky breath, and glanced at myself in the mirror one last time before leaving the room.

— — —

Walking down the torch-lit corridor, my legs grew heavy like I’d strapped columns of stones to my ankles.

As I neared the entrance of the ceremonial hall, the large wooden doors swung open for me and revealed the entire Ambercrest Pack.

The elders stood in a perfect circle in the center of the room, and their eyes bored into me as I walked past.

I stepped into the middle of the circle and looked heavenward. Moonlight streamed into the ceremonial hall by an opening above us, bathing me its pale, silver beam.

"Welcome Belisara, daughter of our late Alpha Berengar." An elder of the pack began and I sighted Morwena sitting in the corner.

Beside her sat my slim, pretty cousin, Cressida, and next to Cressida was my uncle, Maloch—my father's brother.

"Under the witness of the Moon Goddess, we have gathered here to crown Belisara as Luna of Ambercrest." The elder announced while another brought in my crown.

The golden crown was bejeweled with precious gemstones, and it glimmered as it caught the moonlight.

"Daughter of our late Alpha, reveal to us the Golden Wolf that will protect us. Prove to us that you are the Luna we need." He said and the air stilled.

This was the moment.

Everyone had their eyes on me and I reached into the deep, quiet spaces of my mind, calling out my wolf.

Come out. Please, come out. They're waiting for us.

I clenched my hands and focused on the stirring in my heart but nothing happened.

I closed my eyes tighter, forcing my breathing to slow down despite the panic clawing up my throat.

"Please, come out." I stretched my soul toward the gold spark in my bloodline but where used to be a roaring fire had turned to ice.

A biting cold had wrapped around my Golden Wolf and chained her down.

"Belisara!" Uncle Maloch's deep voice boomed, cutting through the silence. "Begin the shift!"

I squeezed my eyes shut and strained my cold, frail heart. Stop hiding! Stop being weak! I screamed aloud in my mind for a single gold fur, a fracture of bone, a growl or anything.

But my skin remained human and I stood there, trapped in my soft flesh.

Seconds stretched into minutes and the heavy silence turned into sharp, suffocating whispers.

"Where is the Golden Wolf?"

"I knew it, she's too fat to shift."

"She has no wolf at all."

I slowly opened my eyes and hot tears blurred my vision as the elders stared at me with deep shame and pity.

Uncle Maloch stepped into the center of the circle, his face twisting into a mask of pure, unadulterated disgust.

"Look at you!" He barked, his voice echoing off the stone walls. "You are a disgrace unfit to rule this pack! You can't even shift into a pup. You have no wolf!"

"Uncle, please," Tears spilled down my cheeks. "Something is wrong. I can't reach her. Just give me more time—"

"Time won't fix a wolfless vessel!" He snarled, turning his back on me to face the crowd. "A leader must have a beast to protect the people!"

Hushed murmurs traveled across the crowded hall and my own pack stared at me like a stranger. Nobody stood up for me, nobody defended my honor.

"The line of Alpha must continue, or else our pack will fall at the mercy of our enemies!" Uncle Maloch turned to face me again.

"Since the bloodline of the late Alpha Berengar has failed, Maloch should be our new Alpha." Morwena stepped in and stood next to her husband.

The elders glanced at each other, and showed no hesitation as they declared in unison. "We hereby crown Maloch as Alpha of Ambercrest Pack."

"Uncle." I gasped in shock, clasping my hands over my lips, and watching the elders place my father's crown on Uncle Maloch's head.

How dare they disrespect my father's crown? How could they forget him so soon?

Cressida plastered a wicked smile on her face and everyone else seemed fine with the elders declaration.

"As for you, Belisara. . ." Uncle Maloch strode to me. "From this day onward, your title and rank are stripped away. You're no longer royalty. You're now the wolfless Omega of the Ambercrest Pack."

"No!" The word ripped out my throat. My panic overrode my dignity and I dropped to my knees. "Please, Uncle! Please, don't do this to me! My father died for this pack! Please!" I crawled on the dirt until my fingers caught the heavy fabric of his cloak.

"Get your filthy hands off me, you fat dog," Uncle Maloch hissed and struck the back of his hand on my cheek.

SLAP!

The force fractured the air and I spun into the dirt. My face throbbed in pain but my heart ached a thousand times worse.

"Uncle, please!" I shivered on the cold ground, my white dress staining with mud, as a heavy downpour of rain broke out the sky.

Please, I begged the dark, empty void inside myself. Please come out. Don't abandon me like this.

But the biting cold in my veins didn't melt and my wolf never answered.