The clearing was silent, too silent.
My chest rose and fell with each heavy breath, the silver glow in my fur slowly fading, leaving me trembling with exhaustion. Around us, wolves stood frozen, their eyes wide with shock and fear.
They had just witnessed it—my shift, my power, the curse that was supposed to destroy them all… yet instead, I had destroyed the darkness.
"She's dangerous," a warrior finally muttered, his voice cutting through the silence. "That wasn't normal. No wolf glows like that."
Murmurs erupted instantly, spreading like wildfire.
"It's the curse."
"She'll doom us."
"No… maybe she saved us."
"She doesn't belong here!"
Every word sank like knives into my chest. I lowered my head, shame pressing down on me, but before I could retreat into the shadows like I always did, Damien moved.
His wolf shifted back into human form with fluid grace. Tall, broad, his body was streaked with blood and sweat, but his presence was more commanding than ever. His dark eyes swept over the pack, silencing them with a single look.
"Enough," he growled, his voice low, vibrating with lethal authority. "What you saw tonight was not a curse. It was strength."
Some wolves lowered their heads, unwilling to meet his gaze. Others scowled, whispering among themselves.
Damien ignored them and turned to me. His eyes locked onto mine, and for a moment, the world faded. The bond between us hummed, steady and undeniable, pulling me toward him no matter how hard I wanted to resist.
"You're afraid of yourself," he said softly, only loud enough for me to hear. "But I am not afraid of you. And neither will my pack be."
"Damien…" I whispered, my voice shaking. "They'll never accept me."
His lips curved into a dangerous smile, his hand brushing a strand of hair from my face with surprising gentleness. "Then they'll learn. Because you're mine."
Gasps rippled through the crowd again, sharper this time, more panicked. The Alpha claiming a cursed mate? To them, it was unthinkable.
And then, from the back of the circle, an elder's voice rose above the chaos, trembling but resolute.
"It has begun."
All eyes turned to him. He was old, bent with age, but his eyes burned with a strange light as he looked at me—not with hatred, but with recognition.
"The prophecy," he whispered, his gaze never leaving mine. "The cursed child… the silver wolf… destined to either save us all… or bring our end."
My heart stopped.
The pack erupted into shouts, anger and fear clashing in the air. Damien stepped in front of me instantly, shielding me from their judgment, his aura crashing down to silence them once more.
But deep inside me, the words echoed, chilling me to the bone.
Save us all… or bring our end.
The pack erupted like a storm.
"This is madness!"
"She'll destroy us!"
"We can't allow this, Alpha!"
Voices rose, snarls echoing in the night, fear twisting into anger. Wolves shifted restlessly, some pacing, some baring their teeth—not at Damien, but at me. Their hatred was a living thing, pressing against my chest until I could barely breathe.
Damien's eyes blazed, his aura exploding outward in a wave of raw dominance that dropped half the wolves to their knees. "You will not question me again," he thundered, his voice like iron.
The air grew heavy, suffocating under his power. Even those who resisted lowered their heads, trembling. For a moment, silence returned.
But silence didn't mean peace.
I could see it in their eyes—resentment, doubt, the whisper of rebellion simmering beneath the surface.
The elder, still staring at me, murmured again, "The prophecy cannot be ignored."
Damien's head snapped toward him, his jaw tightening. "Prophecies are nothing but words twisted by fear. I decide this pack's future."
The elder bowed his head, but I caught the shadow in his eyes. He wasn't convinced. None of them were.
My heart sank. I had lived my whole life as an outcast, hated and avoided. Now, even with power burning inside me, nothing had changed. If anything, it was worse.
When the crowd finally began to disperse under Damien's command, I turned away, trembling. My wolf stirred inside me, restless and confused. Chosen, Damien had called me. But chosen for what—salvation or destruction?
I didn't know.
A hand caught my wrist again, firm but gentle. I looked up, startled, into Damien's dark, unyielding eyes.
"Come with me," he said quietly, his tone softer now, almost protective.
He led me away from the training grounds, away from the stares and whispers. The night air was cool, the forest thick around us, muffling the noise of the pack. When we stopped near the river, moonlight spilling across the water, I finally pulled free, wrapping my arms around myself.
"They'll never accept me," I whispered, my voice breaking. "I saw the way they looked at me. Like I'm a monster."
Damien stepped closer, his presence overwhelming, but not suffocating. His hand lifted, brushing against my cheek with surprising tenderness for a man so feared.
"Then let them look," he murmured. "You are mine. And no one will ever touch what's mine."
The bond between us pulsed stronger, my heart thundering as his gaze pinned me in place. For the first time in my life, someone wasn't pushing me away. He was pulling me closer.
And that terrified me more than the curse ever could.
I stepped back slightly, needing air, needing space from the intensity of his stare. My chest was tight, my thoughts tangled. How could he claim me so boldly when his entire pack despised me? How could he look at me like I wasn't cursed, like I was something worth fighting for?
"Why me?" I whispered, almost afraid of the answer. "You could have anyone, Damien. Why claim the one wolf everyone fears?"
His lips curved into the faintest of smirks, but his eyes burned with raw truth. "Because fate doesn't ask permission. And because I see what they're too blind to see."
The bond between us pulsed, stronger than before, pulling me closer like invisible threads stitched into my very soul. For a moment, the world was still—just him and me, the river whispering softly under the moonlight.
But then… a twig snapped.
My wolf's ears perked instantly, my gaze snapping to the trees. The scent hit me next—familiar, sharp, laced with fear and something else. Betrayal.
Damien's body went rigid. His head turned, eyes narrowing into the shadows. "Show yourself," he growled, his Alpha tone reverberating through the night.
A figure stumbled out of the trees, his eyes wide, face pale. One of the pack warriors. I recognized him—Kieran, a young wolf who had mocked me more times than I could count. His hands shook as he backed away, but I saw the truth in his gaze. He had seen everything.
Damien's eyes darkened. "You were spying."
Kieran swallowed hard, his voice trembling. "I—I had to, Alpha. You don't see it. She's dangerous! You're blinded by the bond. The pack has a right to know what she truly is!"
My heart clenched. I knew that look. He would run straight back to the others, twist what he saw, and fuel the fire already burning against me.
Damien took a step forward, his aura slamming down like a hammer. Kieran's knees buckled, but still he glared at me with pure hate. "She'll destroy us all," he spat.
Before Damien could strike, my voice broke through, shaky but firm. "Let him go."
Damien's head snapped toward me, eyes blazing with disbelief. "He's a traitor."
"Maybe," I whispered. "But if you silence him now, the pack will only fear me more. They'll say I forced you to kill him."
His jaw tightened, muscles straining with restraint. For a long moment, I thought he would ignore me. But then, with a low growl, Damien stepped back, releasing his hold over Kieran.
"Run," he ordered coldly. "And pray you live long enough to regret your words."
Kieran scrambled to his feet, casting one last venomous look at me before vanishing into the trees.
Silence stretched again, but this time, it was heavier. I hugged myself, staring at the ground. I had only just shifted, only just discovered this terrifying power inside me… and already, enemies were rising.
Damien's hand gripped my chin, tilting my face back up to meet his dark gaze. His voice was quiet, but laced with steel.
"Remember this, little wolf—let them whisper, let them scheme. They will not break you. They will not break us."
The bond throbbed painfully sweet between us, his words wrapping around my heart like chains I didn't know if I wanted to escape from.
But deep inside, I couldn't shake the elder's words.
Save us all… or bring our end.
And I didn't know which path fate had chosen for me.