MARKED BY THE ALPHA'S HATE

Darius didn't sleep that night.

He kept his eyes on Selene instead.

She'd curled around the sword like it belonged to her, like she didn't trust the world enough to let go of it. The runes along the blade pulsed slowly, matching the beat of her heart. Even in sleep, she was changing.

And he could feel it in the bond shifting, warping. Growing stronger, but less familiar.

He didn't want to admit it out loud, but he felt it deep in his chest:

Selene was becoming something he didn't fully understand.

And maybe couldn't protect.

At dawn, she woke with a sharp inhale.

The Forsworn are close, she said.

Darius nodded. I know.

Selene sat up. They won't wait long. That girl said they'd come for me.

They'll try.

Selene didn't smile. I need to finish what my mother started.

She reached for the sword, and this time, it didn't just hum.

It sang.

Neris met them at the edge of a moss-covered cliff, just before sunrise.

She didn't look surprised. You felt the pull.

Selene frowned. What is this place?

The site of the first Moonblood bond,Neris said softly. Where your mother performed the blood rite.

Selene stared down at the carved stone platform beneath them ancient, circular, and veined with dry cracks. Symbols surrounded the edge, faint but still glowing.

It's older than the packs, Neris continued. Older than Victor. Older than the wars.

Darius crossed his arms. What does the rite do?

Neris hesitated. It completes the bond between the chosen Moonblood and the blade. But more than that it binds the wielder to prophecy. To power.

And the cost? Selene asked.

There's always a cost,Neris said quietly. This one might be your soul.

Darius stepped forward. Then she's not doing it.

I have to,Selene said. If I don't claim it now, someone else will.

Neris looked grave. "It must be done by blood. Your blood. Your choice. No one can force it."

I'm not being forced, Selene said. "I'm ready.

She stepped into the circle.

The runes flared to life.

And the ground beneath her feet trembled.

The moment her blood touched the stone, the wind stopped.

Time slowed.

And everything around her went silent.

Selene felt her knees buckle as power tore through her....wild, ancient, and furious.

Visions crashed into her mind like waves:

A woman bound in chains her mother.

A pack torn apart by fire Caerthalon.

A child hidden in a snow-covered cave herself.

And Victor, looming above it all, with eyes like burning coals and a crown made of bone.

Selene screamed.

Not from pain.

From clarity.

Because she didn't just understand the prophecy now.

She was the prophecy.

Outside the circle, Darius moved to grab her but Neris stopped him.

She has to do this alone, the Oracle warned.

She's bleeding.

She's being remade.

Inside the circle, Selene's eyes were wide open, glowing white.

The blade floated above her palms.

And when she reached for it, the sky cracked open.

Lightning struck the stone.

And Selene didn't fall.

She rose.

When the light faded, the sword had changed.

It was longer now, forged with a twin edge and a blackened core. The runes burned red. The air around it shimmered with heat.

And Selene stood at the center of the stone like a queen from another age.

Darius stepped forward, heart pounding.

Selene?

She turned.

And for a moment, she didn't recognize him.

Then the bond snapped back into place, stronger than before.

I'm still me, she whispered. But I remember now. Everything.

Darius studied her face. What did you see?

My mother's death, she said. The ritual Victor stole. The reason he wants me dead.

She touched the hilt. He's afraid. Not of the sword. Of what happens when I use it.

Miles away, Victor Crane stood in a high tower, fingers pressed to the glass.

She took the rite,he said, eyes flashing. The sword is complete.

Talon stood behind him, arms crossed.

Should we call the Forsworn back?

Victor's smile was thin. No. Let them try.

She's too powerful now.

Victor turned. Then break her from the inside.

Talon frowned. How?

Victor poured a drink and sipped slowly.

Go after Darius.

Later that night, as they camped near the ravine again, Selene sat with the blade across her lap.

She didn't speak.

Didn't sleep.

Didn't blink.

Darius finally sat beside her. You've been quiet.

I'm trying not to lose myself, she admitted.

Then don't, he said. "I'll remind you who you are.

She looked at him, eyes softening.

I don't want to hurt you, she whispered.

You won't, he said. Even if you could.

But Selene didn't answer.

Because deep down, part of her wasn't sure.

The power was growing too fast.

The bloodline was waking too loud.

And something inside her was whispering not in fear…

…but in hunger.