The Obsidian Bargain

Lyra

The three red-eyed wolves lunged at once. They weren't just hungry; they were rabid. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for the feel of teeth on my throat.

But the attack never came.

Instead, a sound like a whip cracking filled the air. I opened my eyes to see a wall of solid shadows standing between me and the wolves. The shadows didn't just block them, they swallowed them. One second the wolves were snarling, and the next, they were gone. No blood. No bodies. Just silence.

Zade Valerius stood over me, his hand still extended. He didn't look like a hero. He looked like the monster that lived under the hero’s bed.

"Get up," he commanded. His voice was deep and rattled in my chest. "Unless you want to wait for the next pack to finish what Caleb started."

The mention of Caleb’s name felt like a fresh wound. I forced myself to stand, even though my legs felt like water. I wiped the mud from my face and looked at him. "Why did you save me? Nobody helps a rankless girl for free."

Zade stepped closer. He was so tall I had to tilt my head back to see his face. "I don't care about your rank, Lyra. I care about what is hidden in your blood. You’re a Void-Wolf. You don’t even know it, do you?"

"I’m nothing," I whispered. "I’ve never even shifted."

"That’s because you aren't meant to grow fur and howl at the moon," Zade said. He reached out and touched my collarbone. His skin was burning hot against mine. "You are meant to silence it. You can shut down an Alpha's power with a single thought. That’s why your old pack treated you like trash. They were terrified of you."

I stared at him, my mind spinning. All those years of being called weak, being beaten, being told I was useless was all a lie?

"My pack, the Obsidian Legion, is under a curse," Zade continued. He didn't sound like he was asking for help; he sounded like he was making a business deal. "The shadows I control are eating me from the inside. Your presence calms them. I need you to stay by my side so I don't lose my mind."

"And what do I get?" I asked. My voice was getting stronger. The "Ice Queen" I had built to survive the kitchen was starting to take over.

Zade’s eyes flashed with a dark, emerald light. "Everything. I will give you a seat at my table. I will give you the finest silk and the sharpest blades. I will give you an army. And when you are ready, I will give you Caleb Miller’s head on a silver tray."

Revenge. The word tasted better than any meal I had ever eaten. I thought about Sasha’s mocking laugh. I thought about Caleb’s cold rejection. I thought about the glass cutting into my feet while they danced.

"I don't want his head," I said, my voice cold. "I want him to watch me take everything he loves. I want him to know it was the 'maid' who destroyed him."

Zade’s smirk widened. It was a dangerous, beautiful sight. "Then we have a deal. But there is a catch."

"What catch?"

"To keep my enemies away, the world must believe we are fated mates. We have to live together. We have to be seen together. You will be my Luna in name, and I will be your shield in blood."

I looked at his hand. If I took it, there was no going back. I would be leaving my old life forever. I would be entering a world of shadows and war.

I reached out and gripped his hand. "Deal."

The moment our palms met, a shockwave of energy exploded from us. The rain around us turned to steam. I felt a surge of power in my veins that I had never felt before. The "Void" Zade talked about wasn't a hole; it was a flood.

"Good," Zade whispered. He leaned down, his lips brushing my ear. "Now, let’s go home. We have a wedding to ruin."

He swept me up into his arms. I should have felt small, but for the first time in my life, I felt like a giant.

We arrived at the Obsidian Fortress within minutes. It was a castle made of black stone and glass, perched on a cliff. Zade didn't drop me at the door. He carried me through the main hall, past hundreds of warriors who dropped to their knees as he passed.

He took me to a room filled with luxury. There was a bed with silk sheets and a tub filled with steaming water.

"Wash the mud of the Crescent Moon off your skin," Zade said. "In the morning, the training begins. You have three weeks until the Winter Gala. That is when Caleb and Sasha will announce their wedding date."

He turned to leave, but he stopped at the door.

"Oh, and Lyra?"

"Yes?"

"I lied about one thing," he said, his back still to me.

My heart skipped a beat. "What?"

"I told you the world must believe we are fated mates." He turned his head, and I saw the darkness swirling in his eyes. "But the way my shadows are reacting to you... I don't think we have to pretend at all."

He closed the door, leaving me alone with my thoughts. I walked over to a large mirror and looked at myself. I was covered in dirt and blood, but my eyes were different. They weren't the eyes of a servant anymore.

Suddenly, a loud thud came from the balcony.

I grabbed a heavy glass vase from the table, my heart racing. A dark figure stepped out of the shadows of the terrace. It was a man, but he was covered in black fur and his claws were dripping with fresh blood.

He wasn't a wolf. He was something else.

"The King's little toy," the creature hissed, his voice sounding like grinding stones. "He didn't tell you about the others, did he? The ones who died trying to save him?"

The creature lunged at me, his claws aimed straight for my heart.