The forest never sleeps. At least, not when you belong to it.
Night fell like a velvet curtain, and the moon hung low, silver and watchful. I stepped quietly through the undergrowth, senses alert to every whisper of wind and shift of shadows. The first few days after the Blood Moon had changed everything. I was no longer just Aria, the girl who ran a small shop. I was something more. Something dangerous. Something alive in ways I had only begun to understand.
Kael moved beside me, silent but commanding. He didn't need to speak for me to know what he wanted — focus. Precision. Control. My wolf stirred inside, eager, restless, hungry for movement.
"Tonight," Kael said, his voice low, almost a growl, "you'll face your first real test."
I swallowed. My pulse jumped. "Test?"
"Not just training," he clarified. "Rogues are still out there. They'll test you. You have to be ready."
The forest seemed to lean in, listening. Every rustle, every creak of a branch sounded louder than it should have. My senses were heightened. I could smell the damp earth, the bitter tang of distant wolves, and Kael's familiar scent weaving through the night. It was grounding and terrifying at the same time.
We reached a small clearing. Moonlight spilled across it, illuminating the dew on the grass. Kael stopped. "This is where it begins."
Before I could question him, a low growl rumbled from the shadows. Two shapes emerged — wolves, larger than natural, their fur dark as midnight, eyes glowing with aggression. They circled us slowly, testing, watching.
I felt the instinct first — the pull of my wolf, the surge of power I didn't yet fully understand. My hands itched to shift, to tear into the threat. Kael's presence beside me tempered it, reminding me to focus, to control.
"Breathe," he murmured. "Control comes first."
I nodded, forcing my chest to rise and fall in deliberate rhythm. Slowly, the world sharpened. I could sense the wolves' tension, their hesitation, and the faint flicker of fear when they realized I wasn't just human.
Then one lunged.
Time slowed. I shifted instinctively, my body changing in a flash of fur and muscle. Claws sank into the soft earth as I landed on four legs, eyes glowing silver in the moonlight. The wolves froze, startled.
Kael mirrored me, his golden eyes blazing, his presence solid, unshakable. Together, we moved as one, circling the intruders, asserting dominance without unnecessary violence.
The lead rogue snarled, teeth bared, but something in my stance — the mark beneath my fur pulsing — made him pause.
"Silver…" Kael's voice was both warning and praise. "Remember your strength. Remember your wolf."
I inhaled sharply. Power surged from my core, radiating outward, connecting me to the earth, the moon, and the pack. My growl rumbled from deep in my chest, vibrating through the forest. The rogue's hackles rose. They understood — this wasn't a human to intimidate. This was a wolf awakened, marked, and ready.
The standoff lasted only moments before the rogues retreated, lips curling in reluctant respect. The forest exhaled with us.
Kael stepped closer, his voice calm but firm. "You've passed your first test."
I looked at him, chest heaving. "That was… terrifying."
"Good," he replied with a faint smirk. "Fear sharpens instinct. Confidence sharpens power. You must have both."
I nodded, still absorbing the rush of adrenaline, the heat of my wolf, the reality that I had survived — no, triumphed — over real danger.
The forest grew quiet again, the moonlight serene. But I knew better. This was only the beginning.
Somewhere in the shadows, others watched. Others waited. And deep in my chest, beneath the mark, I felt it: the pull of destiny, stronger than ever.
The Night of the First Howl was over. But the journey — mine and the pack's — had only begun.