Chapter 1 Chapter 1

Eliara's POV 

Today is the happiest day of my life because the wicked Alpha Kael Blackthorn was brought back from war dead.

The warriors whispered that he had been struck by a poisonous arrow just as he was about to kill the leader of the warlocks and that his wound was rejecting every antidote.

I smiled because his death meant freedom.

How ironic that this news came on the very day that marked ten years since I became an omega in the Blackthorn pack. 

Ten years since Alpha Kael wiped my pack off the face of the earth simply because he despised what we were wolves born with supernatural abilities he couldn't control.

I watched my parents and siblings scream and bleed out on the battlefield while his warriors laughed and called it victory.

I survived only because I ran.

I hid in the woods praying for the moon goddess to save me but they found me.

And for the past ten years, every sunrise has come with the same wish that I had died with my family that night.

“Take him to the morgue,” one of the elders said grimly. “Begin the death rites immediately. By tomorrow, we will appoint a new Alpha. It is unfortunate he did not leave behind an heir before his demise.”

Murmurs of agreement followed.

I watched in silence as Alpha Kael’s body was placed on a stretcher, his blood-soaked armor still clinging to him. 

The warriors lifted him onto their shoulders and carried him toward the Alpha’s morgue, their faces tight with shock and disbelief.

So this is how it ends, I thought bitterly.

He had always boasted that he was untouchable. That death itself feared his name.

Look at him now. See how the mighty have fallen.

By this time tomorrow on my nineteenth birthday I would be free, far away from this cursed pack starting a new life with my best friend, Lyra.

Then a scream shattered the air.

“Drop him!” an elder yelled in terror. “Drop him now…!”

The stretcher jerked violently.

“The Alpha is moving,” the elder screamed. “He’s alive!”

Alive?

No. No, no, no…this couldn’t be happening.

My heart slammed painfully against my ribs as the world tilted. 

Why was the Moon Goddess so cruel? Why did she always do this to me…drag hope within my reach only to rip it away?

Just when I dared to believe the suffering might end, she twisted the knife and forced me to relive the same nightmare all over again.

Shouts erupted around the courtyard.

“Call all the healers in the pack!”

“Everyone, prepare an antidote…now!”

“He must not die!”

“Anyone who fails to provide a cure will be thrown into the dungeons!”

Panic spread like wildfire.

Wolves scattered in every direction, crashing into one another as they ran. 

Mortars were dragged out, herbs crushed, potions mixed with shaking hands. Ancient chants filled the air as rituals were recited again and again.

I stood frozen, watching it all unfold.

Alpha Kael lay unmoving on the stretcher, his chest barely rising, his skin already turning pale.

No matter what they poured down his throat or pressed against his wound, nothing changed.

He did not wake.

A breath brushed my ear.

“I’ve packed our bags,” Lyra whispered, her voice low “At first light, we leave. I know he won’t wake up.”

I was about to respond to Lyra when a sharp voice tore through the chaos.

“You! Omega! Come here!”

I froze, my head snapping toward the sound.

Me? I pointed to myself, my hands trembling. “M-me?”

“Of course, you!” the elder barked, his eyes narrowing. “With a gift like yours, you should be able to heal our Alpha. Isn’t that right, pack?”

All eyes turned to me, the heat of a hundred stares burning into my skin. My stomach twisted.

“No! I… I can’t,” I stammered, my voice barely a whisper. “If I do this, I’ll…I'll die. I can’t survive it.”

The elder’s hand lashed out, striking my cheek with a sickening crack. Blood welled from my split lip as pain shot through me.

“Are you saying your stupid life is worth more than our Alpha’s?” he spat, venom dripping from every word. “The effrontery…how dare you!”

I stumbled back, my hands covering my mouth. 

Somehow…somehow I had feared it would come to this.

I possessed a gift no wolf had ever seen before. 

I could heal wounds with my hands. I could feel pain through skin contact, even take it into my own body.

They wanted me to take the Alpha’s suffering. 

But the depth of his injuries, the poisoned wound coursing through his veins, the blood he had already lost…

If I attempted the ritual, I would be dead before it even finished.

The elder’s voice thundered across the courtyard.

“Grab her! Now! We don’t have much time. If the other packs find out, everything we’ve hidden…everything will be exposed!”

The truth was, I had been kept hidden in the farthest wing of the omega quarters because everyone was afraid of my powers.

I exchanged a knowing look with Lyra and before the warriors lunged at me, I bolted.

I ran like the Moon Goddess herself was chasing me.

But did I really think a weak omega like me could outrun them?

Not even halfway through the courtyard, a massive hand grabbed my arm. Pain exploded as a fist smashed into my eye and stars danced in my vision.

They dragged me to the ground, my hair yanked painfully as I tried to twist free.

“Leave me alone! I can't do this! Please, I beg you!” I yelled as I coughed out blood.

All my screams fell on deaf ears as I fought with all my strength kicking and crying but my small body couldn't match their trained strength.

The world tilted as they hauled me upright and shoved me through the heavy doors of the Alpha’s inner chambers with a last final warning.

“Listen there, little omega, if he dies you die, if he lives, you live”