The clearing was silent. Too silent.
Moments ago, the air had been full of snarls, claws, and blood. But after my scream, after the silver light burst from me, everything had stopped. Both Alphas froze. Both packs bowed their heads as if the Goddess herself had descended.
And me? I stood trembling, my chest heaving, silver still flickering faintly across my skin.
It felt wrong, unnatural. I wasn't supposed to glow like that. I wasn't supposed to carry a voice that could silence armies. I wasn't supposed to matter this much.
I pressed my arms tight around myself, as if I could hold my body together before it split apart again.
Kael moved first.
He stepped toward me, his boots crunching against the dirt, his fire-bright eyes locked on mine. "Aria," he rasped, his voice low and rough, like a man starved. "You're—" His hand twitched at his side, as if he wanted to reach for me but didn't dare. "You're not just a mate."
His words sent a shiver through me. He looked at me with awe, with hunger, with a desperate edge that scared me.
Before I could answer, Darius stepped forward. His wolves parted for him like water around stone. His icy eyes studied me, sharp and calculating, though his voice was softer than I expected.
"She is more than we thought," he said to Kael, to the packs, maybe even to himself. "Not cursed. Chosen."
Whispers rippled through the wolves around us.
Chosen.
Marked by the Goddess.
Alpha… maybe more.
My knees threatened to buckle. I wanted to scream at them to stop saying those things, to stop staring at me like I was some holy weapon. But the words wouldn't come.
Because part of me knew they were right.
The standoff ended with the packs pulling back. Darius gave a sharp command, and his wolves retreated, dragging the injured with them. Kael snarled but didn't press forward, though his wolves lingered like shadows.
"You've made your point," Darius said, his tone clipped. His gaze flicked toward me. "For now."
Kael's fire smoldered in his eyes as he growled back, "This isn't finished."
The two Alphas didn't shake hands. They didn't bow. They simply turned away, their packs splitting the clearing in half as they withdrew.
And I stood in the middle, glowing faintly under the moon, feeling like I had shattered something I couldn't fix.
Back in Darius's lodge, the silence pressed heavier than the air outside.
He dismissed his wolves with a flick of his hand, leaving us alone. I sat by the fire, staring into the flames, my hands still trembling.
"What happened out there?" I whispered.
Darius leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his eyes fixed on me. "You already know."
I shook my head, my throat dry. "No, I don't. That light—my voice—it wasn't me."
His gaze sharpened. "It was you. The bonds awakened something in you. The Goddess doesn't bind two Alphas to one wolf without purpose. She made you a bridge. Or maybe…" His voice lowered. "Something stronger."
The words made my stomach twist. "I don't want to be stronger. I didn't ask for this."
Darius pushed off the wall, stepping closer. "Power doesn't care if you ask. It comes when it chooses. And when it does, you either control it… or it controls you."
I flinched at the steel in his voice. He wasn't threatening me. He was warning me.
And the worst part was, I believed him.
That night, sleep never came. I tossed on the furs, every sound outside making me jolt. My body hummed with restless energy, as if the glow still lingered under my skin.
When dawn came, I slipped outside, desperate for air. The village was quiet, the wolves moving cautiously, their eyes following me wherever I went. Not with scorn, not with hatred—like before.
This was worse.
They looked at me with reverence. Fear.
One wolf even bowed his head as I passed.
My chest tightened. I wanted to scream that I wasn't their savior, wasn't their leader, wasn't anything but a girl caught in a nightmare she couldn't escape. But my throat stayed silent.
Because deep inside, my wolf preened at their stares. She liked it.
That scared me more than anything.
By midday, Kael came.
Not alone—never alone. His wolves prowled at the border, restless, their eyes locked on me. He didn't wait for an invitation. He strode straight into the village like he owned it, flames of fury in his eyes.
Darius's wolves bristled, stepping into formation, but Darius himself appeared before blood could spill. His jaw tightened, his icy calm sharp as a blade.
"You don't belong here," Darius said flatly.
Kael ignored him. His eyes burned straight into me. "Come with me."
The fire bond flared hot, so hot it hurt. My body trembled, my wolf howling, desperate to run to him.
But the icy bond answered, cold and steady, holding me in place.
"I can't," I whispered, my voice breaking.
Kael's jaw clenched, his fists shaking. "Why? Because he keeps you caged? Because his ice has already wrapped around your heart?"
Darius stepped forward, his eyes narrowing. "She stays because she chooses to. Unlike you, I don't need to chain her."
The two Alphas glared at each other, the tension thick as storm clouds.
But before they could clash again, I stepped between them, my voice shaking. "Enough."
They both froze.
"You said it yourselves," I continued, breathless. "The Goddess doesn't make mistakes. Then maybe this isn't a mistake. Maybe it's a test. And if either of you truly want me, then you'll stop trying to tear each other apart."
The silver light flickered faintly across my skin again, soft but visible. Both Alphas saw it. Both stilled.
Kael's voice dropped, rough with desperation. "I'll stop, Aria. For you. But only if you come back with me."
Darius's gaze didn't waver. "And I'll stop, as long as you stay. With me, you'll be free. With him, you'll burn."
My heart ached. My wolf clawed at me, torn in two. Both bonds screamed for me, neither loosening their grip.
And in that moment, I realized the truth.
This wasn't just about choosing between Kael or Darius. This was about me. About the power inside me that neither of them could control.
The Goddess hadn't made me their prize. She had made me their equal.
And that terrified me most of all.
That night, the whispers grew louder. Wolves from both packs gathered in secret, speaking of me as if I wasn't flesh and blood but prophecy. Some called me hope. Others called me danger.
I curled on the furs, clutching my knees, my chest aching with the weight of it all.
Because no matter what they called me, one truth remained:
I wasn't invisible anymore.
And the world would never let me be invisible again.