Lorien
The school hallways were always loud, filled with the sound of laughter, footsteps, and conversations. But for me, they were a battlefield.
I kept my head down, moving quickly as I navigated through the crowd, clutching my books to my chest like a shield. If I made myself small enough, if I didn’t make eye contact, maybe today would be different. Maybe they’d leave me alone.
But I knew better.
A hard shove from behind sent me sprawling forward. My books slipped from my grasp, scattering across the floor. The hallway erupted in laughter.
"Oops," a voice drawled mockingly. "Didn’t see you there, omega."
I swallowed hard, my hands shaking as I reached for my books.
"Pathetic," another voice chimed in. "I swear, the pack gets weaker just having you in it."
I didn’t look up. The sheer amount of disgust dripping from the words let me know exactly who it was.
Cassius Blackwood.
The future Alpha. My worst nightmare.
He stood with his usual smirk, arms crossed, exuding the effortless dominance that made everyone else fall in line. His friends—his pack—stood beside him, watching, waiting for the next cruel entertainment.
I kept my voice calm. "I just want to get to class."
"Yeah?" Cassius stepped closer, his polished shoes stopping right in front of my hand as I reached for my last book. "And I just want an omega-free pack. Looks like neither of us gets what we want."
I flinched as he nudged the book away with his foot, sending it sliding down the hall. More laughter.
Blood Fang Pack was built on strength. Ruthlessness. Power.
The weak had no place here.
It was something Alpha Dorian Blackwood had drilled into every single wolf under his rule. Cassius’s father was a legend—a brutal, cunning leader who had transformed Blood Fang from a struggling pack into one of the strongest in the region. He ruled with an iron fist, and under his leadership, only the strong survived.
Omegas, especially male omegas, were seen as defects. Burdens. Liabilities.
I was the only one in the entire pack.
A disgrace.
And for someone like him, my existence was an insult.
I wanted to fight back. I wanted to say something, anything. But my throat felt too tight.
A hand landed on my shoulder, making me freeze. But the grip was gentle.
"Enough," a familiar voice said. "You’ve had your fun, Cassius."
Julian.
I turned to look at him, my heart pounding.
Julian Halloway—Cassius’s Beta, his right-hand man. The only person in this entire school who had ever shown me any kindness.
Cassius rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on, Julian. You always ruin the fun."
Julian bent down, picking up my books effortlessly before handing them to me. "Come on, Lorien," he said softly.
I hesitated, then took the books, gripping them tightly. "Thanks," I whispered.
Julian didn’t respond. He just walked beside me as we moved down the hall, leaving Cassius and his pack behind.
But I could still feel Cassius’s gaze burning into my back.
And something told me this wasn’t over.
I barely made it through the school day. I kept my head down in class, ignored the whispers, the snickers, the cruel glances. It was nothing new. I had lived with it my entire life.
Omegas were weak.
Male omegas? Even worse.
I had been born a mistake, an embarrassment to the pack. My parents had abandoned me when I was a child, leaving me to fend for myself in a place that didn’t want me.
I was basically an eyesore to everyone that looked at me. I was treated even worse than a criminal sometimes.
Made to do dirty jobs that the pack members didn't want to do.
It was absolutely pathetic.
Tomorrow was my eighteenth birthday. The day every werewolf could finally sense their fated mate.
A lump formed in my throat.
I already knew how it would end. No one would want an omega like me.
No one.
*******
That evening, I stayed late in the library, dragging out the inevitable walk home. But eventually, the halls emptied, the school darkened, and I had no choice but to leave.
I moved through the pack house like a ghost, slipping through the halls unnoticed. The full moon cast a pale glow through the windows, painting everything silver.
The Blood Fang Pack’s estate was massive—a fortress of stone and steel, built more like a stronghold than a home. The walls were lined with weapons. The training grounds were filled with warriors, even at this hour, pushing themselves to the brink of exhaustion.
Weakness was not tolerated.
I walked alone through the dim lit streets, my footsteps quiet against the stony floor.
The clock bell tolled, its echoes reaching every corner of the pack, indicating the beginning of a new day, and I stopped to look up at it.
Happy birthday to me, I guess.
It's another year of constant bullying and insults.
How nice.
I was wallowing in self pity when I saw a shadow lurking in the distance.
And then I saw him.
Cassius.
He was walking toward me, his stride confident, his presence suffocating. He hadn’t noticed me yet, and for a second, I thought about turning around, about escaping before he could say anything—
But then it happened.
The moment our eyes met, something inside me snapped into place.
A fire ignited in my chest, spreading through my veins, hot and undeniable. My breath caught. My knees nearly buckled.
No. No, no, no.
Cassius froze. His entire body went rigid. His midnight-blue eyes widened, and for the first time in my life, I saw something other than amusement or cruelty in them.
Shock. Horror.
I felt it. He felt it.
We were mates.
A shaky breath left my lips, but before I could speak, before I could even process what was happening, Cassius’s expression twisted in revulsion.
His hands clenched into fists. His jaw tightened.
And then, without a single word, he turned and walked away.
Leaving me standing there, heart pounding, the bond burning between us like a cruel joke.
LorienOne month later.The mirror in front of me blurred as I blinked back tears, though not of sadness. My hands trembled slightly as I smoothed them down the gown—masculine in cut, strong in its lines, but flowing enough to feel like something out of a dream. It wasn’t just a piece of clothing; it was a statement, a promise. Every stitch seemed to whisper: this is real, this is happening, you’re loved.I had never imagined myself standing here, dressed in something so beautiful, surrounded by happiness instead of dread. For so long, I had been certain my story would only ever be written in pain. Yet now, as I looked at my reflection, my heart stuttered in disbelief. It was the most beautiful day of my life, and for once, I didn’t have to question whether I deserved it.I was marrying the man I loved.A laugh slipped from my throat before I even realized it. My sons were the culprits, both of them leaning against the doorframe with identical mischievous grins, arms folded like they’
Lorien Two days had passed.Just two days since the nightmare had ended, since blood and ash had been washed from our world, and yet it felt like I had lived an entire lifetime within them.Now I stood outside our house with Cassius, sunlight spilling down in warm golden sheets, the twins giggling as they ran barefoot across the grass. Caius tripped over Lucian’s foot, and instead of crying, he burst into a fit of laughter that made my heart ache with relief. Their voices were the purest sound in existence.I breathed in deep, my chest expanding, my ribs almost trembling with the weight of it. “I can’t believe I’m standing here… that I can actually see a new day,” I murmured, the words spilling out raw, unfiltered.Cassius’s hand brushed mine, his thumb tracing over my knuckles like he wanted to ground me in this moment. “You deserve more than this, Lorien,” he said softly, his voice carrying the rough edge of conviction. His eyes were on me, never straying, like I was the only thing
Lorien I couldn’t breathe. My chest felt like it had caved in as I watched Cassius’s body jerk in ways it shouldn’t have. Horror clawed at me until I couldn’t hold it back anymore.“Help!” I screamed, my voice cracking in desperation. “Somebody, please! Help him!”My throat burned with each plea, but I didn’t stop. The sound of footsteps thundered down the hall until finally the doctors burst into the room, their presence a blur of white coats and sharp, commanding voices. Relief should have settled over me at the sight of them, but instead, dread only grew heavier.I tried to move closer to Cassius, but one of the doctors snapped at me.“Stay back! Do you want to put him in even greater danger?” The sharpness in his tone made me freeze, as if he had struck me across the face. “Both you and your mate already put him in serious peril. Calm the hell down, or we’ll make sure you do.”I gaped at him, shocked. No one had ever spoken to me like that—not in that cold, biting tone that left
CassiusJulian’s screams were music I had been waiting for all my life. The sound cut through the battlefield, piercing the smoke and blood-filled air, yet it didn’t stir a shred of mercy in me. My teeth clamped down on his right leg with a sickening crunch, bone shattering like brittle glass beneath my jaws. Hot blood spurted into my mouth, metallic and vile, but I welcomed it. His shriek rose to the heavens, a pitiful, ragged sound that made my wolf howl in savage satisfaction.“After everything—everything I gave you!” I roared, tearing my muzzle back, flinging the mangled flesh away like it was filth. “You dare betray me? You dare touch my mate?!”Julian’s body convulsed on the blood-soaked ground, his fingers clawing at the dirt as he tried to drag himself away from me. “C-Cassius—please—” he sobbed, his voice broken, wet with blood. “I was your brother in arms… I stood by you—”“Brother?” My laugh was hollow, venom dripping from every syllable. “You? You were the knife I let into
LorienI couldn’t breathe. Every gasp I took burned my lungs, like the air itself had turned to knives. I didn’t know how long I’d been struggling, only that the world around me was chaos—blood, screams, shadows moving in the dark. Somewhere out there, Cassius was fighting, and I could feel his rage tearing through the bond, but I couldn’t focus on that now. I had my own nightmare to survive.The house was too quiet. Too empty. That silence sank into my bones like ice, crawling up my spine. Something was wrong—horribly, sickeningly wrong. My heart pounded as I stumbled through the hall, hands shaking, every instinct screaming that danger was close.Julian.His name echoed in my skull like a curse. I didn’t need anyone to tell me—he was here. He had to be.I froze when I heard a faint sound. Not footsteps. Not a voice. A muffled cry, thin and distant, like it was breaking through a wall. My stomach dropped. That wasn’t in my head. That was real. My children.A sob clawed its way up my
Lorien I could hear my wolf, his voice pulsing in my head like a drumbeat against the madness. Get up. Move. Don’t let it win. Don’t let it kill you.The poison inside me felt like fire burning my veins, dragging molten lead through every limb. My body screamed with weakness, my muscles trembling as if they didn’t belong to me anymore. For a moment, I thought this was it—I would die here, nameless, another broken body discarded in the dark. But my wolf refused. He growled, sharp and unrelenting, cutting through the fog.You’re stronger than this. You can’t stay down. Fight, Lorien. Fight.I clawed at the ground, my fingers shaking as I pushed against the dirt-caked floor. My lungs heaved, pulling in air that felt too thin, too sharp. Slowly, painfully, I forced myself upright, every movement tearing at me like knives. I could still feel the poison, clinging to me like vines trying to drag me back under, but I wasn’t gone. Not yet.Not ever.I staggered forward, each step like walking