MARKED BY THE ALPHA'S HATE

Chapter 16: BLOOD OATH AND BROKEN BONDS



The space between Darius and Talon was razor-thin. A single breath would tip it into bloodshed.

Darius's body ached. His claws were still red, his shirt torn and soaked. But the rage kept him standing.

You going to fight me now? he asked, voice low.

Talon didn't flinch. I'll do what I have to.

You've always been good at pretending loyalty.

And you've always been blind, Talon snapped, jaw tight. You think Victor's the real threat? You're wrong. She is.

Darius's fangs showed. Say her name again. I dare you.

Talon didn't.

Because he didn't need to. Selene's presence had changed everything. The pack felt it. The bloodlines felt it. The old gods felt it.

Even Talon.

Especially Talon.

He took a step back. Not out of fear. Out of calculation.

I'm giving you a choice, he said. Come back with me. We can still clean this up.

There's nothing left to clean up, Darius growled. Victor set the forest on fire. He summoned things he couldn't control. He's gone too far.

Talon's expression didn't change. "Then you're choosing her."

Darius stared at him. I chose her the moment I let her live.

Silence.

Then Talon turned, disappearing into the smoke like a ghost. No challenge. No threats.

Just a quiet warning: This isn't over.

Far from the blaze, Selene stood barefoot in the clearing. The circle Neris had drawn was fading, soaked with her sweat, tears, and blood.

The vision of her mother still burned behind her eyes.

She hadn't just seen a memory.

She'd felt it.

The pain. The choice. The sacrifice.

She gave everything to protect me,Selene whispered, voice hoarse.

Neris knelt beside her. And now it's your turn.

I don't know how, Selene said.

You will. Neris took her hand. "There's one more place you have to go.

Selene looked up, confused. Where?

The crypt beneath the Hollowspire Temple.

I thought that was a myth.

Neris gave a thin smile. So is the Moonblood line. And yet here you are.

Selene's pulse kicked up. What's there?

Your mother's final gift.

Victor Crane stood in the ruins of the scorched camp. The creature Darius had killed was nothing more than bone and black ash now, its power already fading.

Disappointing.

Still, Victor wasn't rattled. He was furious.

But not rattled.

Talon appeared beside him, bowing low. She escaped. Darius let her go.

Of course he did, Victor said coldly.

He's not going to follow orders again. Not after this.

I don't need him to follow orders, Victor said. I need him to suffer.

He turned to face the line of wolves behind him. Blackfang enforcers. Trained. Dead-eyed.

All of them, Victor said, voice sharp enough to cut. Everyone with even a hint of Moonblood in their veins. Kill them.

Talon hesitated. That includes.....

Yes.

Victor didn't blink. Even the pups. Especially the pups.

Talon bowed again.

But as he turned, a flicker of something twisted in his eyes.

Because deep down, he knew the fire Victor had lit wouldn't stop with the Moonbloods.

It would consume them all.

Darius tracked Selene's scent through the edge of the ravine, heart in his throat.

She was still alive. He could feel her through the bond dim but pulsing. Each beat of it pushed him forward.

He found her kneeling by a stream, face pale and hair soaked with sweat.

Relief hit him like a punch.

You're hurt, he said.

She looked up. You always say that.

He crouched beside her. Because it's always true.

Selene reached for him, fingers curling around his wrist.

I saw her,she said. My mother. She was stronger than they ever knew.

Darius's throat tightened. Then so are you.

I'm scared, she admitted.

Good. That means you haven't lost your mind.

A silence settled. But it wasn't heavy. It was honest.

Then Selene looked down at the scarred rune in her hand. I have to go to Hollowspire.

Darius didn't ask why. He didn't question her.

He just nodded. Then I'm going with you.

That night, as they moved through the trees, a shadow peeled away from the rocks.

It wasn't wolf. Or witch.

It was both.

The Shadow Oracle, Neris, walked behind them in silence.

Until she said softly, The Hollowspire is sacred. It will test you.

Selene glanced back. Test me how?

By showing you what you fear most. And what you want most.

Darius's eyes narrowed. What's the cost?

Neris didn't smile.

There's always a cost.

In the crypt, beneath the ruins of Hollowspire Temple, ancient stone doors groaned open at Selene's touch.

She stepped inside first.

The room was lit with blue flame, casting the walls in a glow that looked like moonlight on water.

In the center was a stone altar.

And on it a sword.

Silver. Elegant. Etched with runes in a language older than any pack.

Selene stepped forward.

But before her fingers touched the blade, a voice spoke from the dark.

You are not yet worthy.

She froze.

And turned.

To see a ghost of her mother, standing barefoot in the flame.

"Mother?" she whispered.

But the figure shook her head.

I am not your mother. I am her echo. The part of her that stayed behind to finish what she started.

Selene's voice trembled. Then tell me what to do.

Take the sword, the echo said. But know this once you do, there is no going back. You will not just be hunted. You will become the prophecy.

Darius stepped to her side. You don't have to....

But Selene didn't hesitate.

She gripped the hilt.

And pulled.

The sword came free with a low hum, singing in her blood.

The echo of her mother smiled.

And vanished.


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