Chapter 5

Aaronne's POV

A thousand needles pricked my skin–suddenly, I felt sick in my stomach and my finger tips were chilling cold. 

But Ronan wasn’t finished yet. He raised a hand again, and the room slowly quieted, eager for more.

“This is not a new dream!” he proclaimed, his voice ringing passionately. “It is my grandfather’s dream! He had always dreamt of a pure world, a strong world, ruled by the true power of the Wolf!”

Ripples moved through the crowd. Everyone was saying something yet I couldn't hear anything. 

“A world where the Wolf will reign supreme and other shifters will cower at our feet!!” Roman continued to declare. 

Alpha Borin shifted in his seat, his proud smile tightening by a fraction.

“My own father’s… recent ill health,” Ronan continued, glancing at Borin, who now stared stiffly ahead, “has delayed our family’s destiny. But no more! He has handed over the baton to me. After my wedding, I will officially be pronounced Alpha and we will go on to conquer new lands.”

My father gave Alpha Borin a side glance and he nodded.  

Ronan slammed a fist gently on the table, making the cups jump. “I know what others deny! The swans are NOT extinct! They hide, like cowards, using tricks and magic to cloak their filthy nests!”

A gasp, then murmurs, rippled through the pack mates. Many doubted his words due to the fact that it was well known that Swans were extinct. 

My father leaned forward in his chair, looking at Ronan as he asked, “Magic, you say? What proof do you have of this, Ronan?”

Ronan turned to him, dropping his voice like he was about to share a dark secret. “The lakes that cannot be found on maps, Alpha Kieran. They cloud the minds of weaker creatures and hide their homes with glamours. But I have studied the old ways and I can pierce their veils.”

Stepmother Lyra clasped her hands together, her eyes wide with excitement as she giggled, “How clever to find what is lost!”

Ronan nodded at her, tipping his head in a show off style as he added, “Exactly, Lady Lyra! And when their magic fails, they will be out in the open helplessly where my wolves and I will be waiting.”

Excusing himself from the round table, he started pacing before the dais, painting a picture with his words. “I will not stop at one nest. I will hunt them to every hidden lake. I will cleanse ten of their packs! Twenty! Their feathers will line our halls and their silence will prove our dominance!”

My stepmother let out a thrilled little laugh, clapping her hands happily, leaning towards my father as she said, “Such vision, Kieran. I'm so proud. Our daughter will be mated to a true visionary!”

But he wasn't listening to her, his eyes were calculating as he watched the exchange but I knew he was weighing the cost against the prize. Finally his lips moved and he said, “This is a dangerous pursuit, Ronan. If they have magic…”

“They have weak magic!” Ronan interrupted confidently, his fingers waving dismissively. “The magic of illusion and fear. We have the magic of tooth, claw, strength and will!” 

My lips quivered as I stared at the exchange in the room. Suddenly, Ronan appeared beside me, stroking my hair carefully as he went on, “I know things about them others have forgotten. They are bound to the half-moon’s pull, not the sun. Their power wanes in the daylight where they cannot shift quickly. This is their most vulnerable time because they are creatures of water. Trap them on land, and they will be slow and clumsy.”

‘On the good side, I was finding out more about the species I was so curious about,’ I thought, trying to divert my attention and curb the unease I felt in my belly. But each fact was a dagger twisting in my gut. 

Ronan had done a lot of digging, he wasn’t relying on myths. He had studied his prey and he knew how to kill them… us… me.

“Their greatest weakness,” he continued, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial tone that the whole hall strained to hear, “is sentiment. They mate for life. They will die to protect a mate, or a cygnet. To kill one, you simply threaten the other.”

The whole hall exploded in guffaws but where I sat, I stared at my hands on my lap, the tears stinging my eyes at the cruelty my mate had planned. It wasn't just murder he planned. It was torture, the destruction of everything they were.

Alpha Borin finally spoke up, clearing his throat to restore order in the hall, his voice was gruff and he had a prideful look in his eyes.

“The boy has the heart of a conqueror. This is the next generation, Kieran. They do not just want to hold territory. They want to define it.”

“I’ve not seen a young he-wolf this brave in a long time,” My father replied. “My heart bears so much joy that he is betrothed to my daughter.”

Alpha Borin grunted. “I say we should let them. We should let the young conquer!!” 

My father looked from Borin’s hardened face to Ronan’s fiery one. He looked at the eager faces of the warriors in the hall, from both packs, united by this bloody dream.

Standing carefully to his feet, he raised his cup high declaring, “To Ronan! To the future! To a world made strong and pure! To Wolf Supremacy!”

The hall exploded in reply, raising their cups as well as they chanted, “TO RONAN! TO THE FUTURE!! TO WOLF SUPREMACY!!!”

The toast was a seal on such a terrible pact. Stepmother Lyra was clapping, her cheeks flushed while my father and Alpha Borin were clasping arms, talking in low tones.

Ronan returned to my side and took his seat, leaning to me, his face expecting some sort of praise. “You see, Aaronne? This is the world I will build for you, for our sons.”

I could only stare at him, unable to say a word. Not like I knew what to say anyways. My eyes tried to look for Anya but Ronan tipped my face back to him as he gave me a cheeky smile.

“The wedding,” my father announced, cutting through the noise. “It will be on the night of the third full moon from now. A fitting time for wolves to unite!”

“Three months,” I whispered, letting out a chuckle. Ronan smiled in return, turning to dig into his meat.

‘I had such a laughable fate.’

The musicians began a slow tune to signal the first dance which was for the betrothed who would be leading the celebration.

“Our dance, my lady,” Ronan said, extending a hand to me, as he stood up but he didn't wait for me to take it before he reached down and grabbed my hands. 

Pulling me up, he led me along till we were at the center of the floor. His arm found my waist but his grip was way too tight.

“Dance,” he whispered, leaning into my ears and immediately I followed his lead, moving when my leg should, twirling when he let me. I was like a puppet in my own father's hall and in my own pack.

Suddenly he pulled me close, his mouth near my ear so only I could hear. “You are quiet,” he murmured. “Are you not impressed by my plans?”

I tried to speak but I couldn't find my voice so I cleared my throat subtly, as I responded, “They are… they are vast plans.”

“They are. And you will be by my side for all of it. The first queen of a purified world.” He chuckled, spinning me until I was so sure I was beginning to see nothing. “We will start with the lake nearest our new combined borders. I have had reports… strange lights on the water. It will be our first hunt together and a gift for my bride.”

The music swelled, coming to an end. The wolves cheered for us and we both took a small bow, Ronan's hand secured tightly around my waist like I wasn't allowed to move an inch.

“It hurts,” I whimpered a bit, when the grip was a lot but he didn't stop and just walked to our chair.

My mind was reeling. I needed advice.

What should I do? Do I hunt the hunter before I become the hunted