"No..."
Aiden's voice shook.
Not with weakness.
With disbelief.
His breathing quickened as his eyes darted across the unfamiliar clearing.
Unknown wolves.
Unknown scents.
Unknown faces.
His heart pounded against his ribs.
Where am I?
Where's Theron?
The pups...
His stomach twisted violently.
Kael.
Ryn.
Lior.
Were they safe?
Did they know he was gone?
Were they crying for him?
His pulse raced faster.
The chains rattled as he tested them.
Heavy.
Iron.
Wrapped tightly around both wrists.
Too short to give him much reach.
One of the wolves stepped closer.
"Stay still."
Aiden's eyes snapped toward him.
"Node."
The wolf reached for his shoulder.
Aiden moved.
His hands were useless.
Pinned together by the chains.
So he used what years of fighting had taught him.
His legs.
He twisted sharply, planting one foot into the man's stomach.
The kick landed hard enough to send the surprised wolf stumbling backward.
Gasps erupted through the gathered crowd.
"Grab him!"
Three more wolves rushed forward.
Aiden didn't hesitate.
He ducked beneath the first reaching arm.
The chains limited his balance, but not his instincts.
Someone caught his sleeve.
He spun.
Then bit down.
Hard.
The man's cry echoed through the clearing.
He jerked his bleeding hand away.
Aiden shoved him aside with his shoulder.
Already moving again.
Run.
His wolf screamed the command.
He made it in three steps.
The chain connecting his wrists caught against another length of iron fixed to the stone.
It yanked him backward.
The force threw him onto one knee.
Stone scraped his skin.
Pain shot through his shoulder.
Before he could recover—
Two wolves tackled him.
Aiden snarled.
Not metaphorically.
A real, low growl tore from his throat.
He drove his knee upward.
One attacker folded with a grunt.
He twisted violently, throwing the second off balance.
Another grabbed him from behind.
Aiden slammed the back of his head into the man's face.
Cracked bone.
Someone cursed.
"Hold him!"
I am trying!
Sweat trickled down Aiden's temple.
His breathing grew heavier.
He wasn't fighting to win.
He was fighting because stopping meant accepting this.
And he refused.
"Where am I?!" Aiden shouted.
No answer.
"What is this place?!"
Silence.
"Where's my mate?!"
The wolves exchanged uneasy glances.
"...Poor boy."
"The fear's getting to him."
"He hasn't even seen the Moon God yet."
Aiden's breathing became ragged.
"My children!"
His voice cracked.
"Kael!"
"Ryn!"
"Lior!"
An older she-wolf lowered her gauze.
A quiet sadness crossed her face.
"He's still so young..."
she whispered.
Another wolf nodded.
"Most omegas cry."
"They begin."
"I've never seen one imagine a whole family before."
Aiden stared at them in disbelief.
"Node..."
"They're real!"
"My mate—"
"My children—"
"They're waiting for me!"
His words only deepened the pity in the wolves' eyes.
One warrior quietly muttered,
"Don't listen to him."
"The ceremony frightens everyone."
"He'll settle once the Moon God accepts him."
Accepted.
The word hits Aiden like a physical blow.
"Node."
He shook his head violently.
"I'm not an offering!"
The chains rattled as he struggled again.
"I have a family!"
I have to go home!
His wrists burned against the iron.
Still...
He fought.
The older wolf slowly approached.
Unlike the others, there was no cruelty in his face.
Only quiet sympathy.
"What is your name, son?"
"Aiden."
The answer came instantly.
"And your pack?"
Aiden opened his mouth.
"..."
Nothing.
His heart skipped a beat.
Theron.
The den.
The pups.
Ronan.
The scent of pine after rain.
He remembered all of them perfectly.
But...
The name of the pack he had been born into...
The place he had grown up before meeting Theron...
It was gone.
His breathing faltered.
"I..."
Cold settled deep in his chest.
He remembered the life he had lived.
But the beginning of it...
...had vanished.
The old wolf's expression softened.
"The poor lad."
"He doesn't even remember where he came from."
Before Aiden could speak again...
the entire clearing fell silent.
Every wolf lowered their head.
Someone was approaching.