INICIAR SESIÓNShe could still feel the residual phantom warmth of the forest on her fingers as she stood beside the old oak tree. She watched two wolf warriors press thick cloth against a nasty wound in the captive human's side. The man's breathing had steadied under their care, but every few seconds his features would tighten with sharp, agonizing pain.The Alpha crouched down directly in front of him, his posture entirely unyielding. “Who sent you into my territory?”The wounded tracker looked at him, then shifted his gaze over to Aurora. “No one.”The pack leader's gaze hardened into pure ice. “That was not the question I asked.”The man swallowed hard, a drop of sweat cutting through the dirt on his cheek. “We were simply told the princess was still alive.”Aurora’s heart gave a painful, erratic beat against her ribs. “Who told you that?”The man’s eyes returned to her face, filled with a hollow desperation. “I don’t know his identity.”“You keep saying that,” she pressed, frustration flaring i
She couldn’t move. Her father’s name seemed to hang like a poisonous fog between the heavy branches of the trees. The king. Her king. Her father. For eighteen long years, she had genuinely believed the sovereign was the one person in the world who would always stand by her side. Then, in a single afternoon, he had looked her directly in the eyes and branded her a fraud. Now, an absolute stranger was telling her that the exact same man had launched a secret crusade into the wild to hunt her down.Aurora swallowed the lump in her throat, her voice trembling. “What did he tell the people?”The injured captive looked up at her from the leaves. “That you were not his flesh and blood.”Her chest tightened so painfully it stole her breath, while the Alpha’s expression darkened to pure pitch.“Tell me everything,” the leader commanded, his tone dropping an octave.The man hesitated, wincing under the pressure. “They were told the princess possessed no royal spark. They claim she failed the Ch
She didn’t know how she knew where to go. She simply walked, letting her instinct lead the way. The moment the Alpha released her hand, the strange, ethereal connection to the forest returned. It wasn’t a voice, exactly, but a persistent pull coming from somewhere deep beyond the thick line of trees.She followed the phantom thread, and he stayed close behind her. His warriors moved silently around them like ghosts, their sharp eyes constantly scanning the dark, oppressive canopy.She came to a sudden halt beside an old, gnarled oak tree. “Here.”He stepped up beside her, looking around the dense foliage. “There is nothing here.”Aurora placed her palm flat against the rough bark. The very moment her skin touched the wood, a violent rush of foreign sensation passed straight through her hand and into her chest. She felt a residual wave of agonizing fear and sharp, physical pain. Something had moved through these trees recently, something that absolutely did not belong in this forest.S
He grabbed her hand without warning. “Inside.”Aurora barely had time to react before he pulled her purposefully toward the towering stone entrance of the palace. “What happened?” she asked, straining to keep up with his long, urgent strides.“Not here.”“Ethan.”The Alpha didn’t slow down. Aurora looked over her shoulder as they fled, noticing how the vibrant garden had suddenly gone unnaturally still. There were no birds, no insects, and not even the slightest rustling of leaves. It felt as though the entire courtyard was actively holding its breath.“You are scaring me,” she admitted, her voice trembling.His tight grip loosened slightly on her fingers, though he didn’t let go. “I won’t let anything happen to you.”The absolute certainty in his voice made her look up at him. She believed him, and that realization frightened her almost as much as the threat itself.The moment they reached the main hall, the waiting guards immediately straightened their postures. “Seal the gates,” he
Aurora woke before sunrise. For a few brief seconds, she lay completely still beneath the unfamiliar blankets, staring up at the stone ceiling and trying to piece together exactly where she was. Then, the reality of the last few days rushed back to her in an overwhelming wave. The forest, the massive wolf, the stoic Alpha, the hidden kingdom, the miraculous flowers, and her own volatile power.She sat up slowly, her gaze drifting cautiously toward the bedside table. The flora was still there, but it had completely transformed overnight. They were alive again. She stared at the arrangement, visually stunned to find that the very blooms which had withered into black dust the night before were now blooming vibrantly as though nothing had ever happened.Slipping out of bed, she approached the wood table with quiet steps. She hesitated before extending a single finger to touch one of the soft petals. Nothing happened. She waited, holding her breath, but the plant remained perfectly still.
Aurora didn’t touch the flowers again. She sat tightly on the edge of the mattress with her hands tucked securely beneath her thighs, watching the Alpha carefully examine the wilted black petals. The atmosphere in the room felt entirely different now, not because anything had physically changed, but because she couldn’t stop wondering what might happen if she lost control of this volatile energy again.“What if I hurt someone?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper in the quiet room.He looked up at her, his expression steady. “You won’t.”“You don’t know that.”“I know you were frightened, and yet nothing around you was harmed.”She glanced pointedly at the bedside table. “They died.”“They are flowers.”“That doesn’t make it any better.”He walked toward the table and picked up one of the brittle, ruined petals between his large fingers. “They can grow again.”She frowned, looking at him with a mix of confusion and skepticism. “How do you know that?”“Because this kingdom has people







