Chapter 1: Rejection

“This can’t be happening,” I murmured, more to myself than to anyone else, as I stood in the middle of the grand hall. The heavy wooden doors had just slammed shut behind me, their echo lingering in the air like the finality of my fate.

My heart pounded in my chest, each beat like a countdown to something inevitable, something I couldn’t yet grasp. My hands clenched at my sides, fingers digging into my palms, trying to ground myself in the moment.

"Seraphina." His voice was low, almost a growl, but not from anger—at least not the kind I had grown accustomed to. No, this was different. There was something deeper, something more primal and terrifying, laced into his tone.

I turned slowly, forcing myself to meet his eyes. Alpha Marcus Blackwood stood before me, every inch of him exuding the power and authority that had made him one of the most respected—and feared—leaders in our world.

His eyes, normally a calm, stormy gray, were hard and unyielding now, like shards of ice cutting through me. Behind him, the other pack elders watched in silence, their expressions a mix of pity and apprehension.

"Marcus, please... listen to me," I pleaded, my voice cracking slightly. It wasn’t just my life on the line—it was my entire future, my place in this pack. My home.

"There is nothing more to say, Sera." His tone was cold, final. "The prophecy is clear. If you lead, our pack is doomed."

The words hit me like a physical blow. I staggered back a step, my mind racing to comprehend the gravity of what he was saying. Doomed. That one word reverberated in my mind, mingling with the shock and the betrayal that was quickly turning into something darker—anger.

"The prophecy?" I repeated, struggling to keep my voice steady. "You’re throwing away everything we’ve built together because of some ancient words scribbled in a dusty book? Marcus, we don’t even know if it’s true!"

"It’s not just a book, Sera." He stepped closer, his massive form towering over me, but I refused to back down. "It’s the law of our ancestors. A warning passed down for generations. If you lead as Luna, the Silverwood Pack will fall. I won’t risk that. I can’t."

"And what about us?" I demanded, my anger flaring. "What about everything we’ve been through, everything we’ve fought for? You’re just going to cast me aside because of fear?"

"It’s not just fear!" Marcus’s voice rose, the raw emotion in it catching me off guard. "It’s my duty to protect this pack, no matter the cost. Even if that means… even if that means letting you go."

I stared at him, the words sinking in like poison. He was serious. There was no doubt in his eyes, no hesitation.

The Marcus I thought I knew, the man who had fought beside me, bled with me, laughed with me… he was gone, replaced by this cold, distant leader who saw me as nothing more than a liability.

"I see," I whispered, the fight draining out of me all at once. I felt hollow, like everything that had ever mattered was slipping through my fingers. "So that’s it, then."

His jaw clenched, but he didn’t respond. The silence that followed was deafening, the weight of it pressing down on me until I couldn’t stand it any longer.

I turned on my heel, moving toward the doors. But just before I reached them, Marcus spoke again, his voice barely more than a whisper.

"I’m sorry, Sera."

I stopped, my hand hovering over the door handle. For a moment, I considered turning back, begging him to reconsider, to see me as more than a curse. But I knew it was pointless. He had made his decision.

And so would I.

Without another word, I pushed the doors open and stepped out into the cool night air. The wind bit at my skin, and I wrapped my arms around myself as I made my way down the stone steps of the packhouse. Each step felt heavier than the last, like I was leaving behind a part of myself with every stride.

By the time I reached the bottom, I felt like I was drowning in the silence. The rejection was a knife twisting in my gut, but beneath the pain, something else was simmering. Rage.

Not just at Marcus, but at the injustice of it all. At the way I was being punished for something I couldn’t control, something that might not even be true.

They were wrong about me, I thought, gritting my teeth. I’ll prove them wrong.

I didn’t know how yet, but I would find a way. I wasn’t going to let some prophecy dictate my life. Not when I had so much to offer, so much I could do for the pack.

I took a deep breath, letting the cool air fill my lungs, trying to calm the storm raging inside me. But just as I was about to start the walk back to my cabin, I heard it—a faint rustling, like leaves being disturbed by something heavy.

I froze, every instinct on high alert. Slowly, I turned my head, scanning the shadows of the surrounding woods. The moonlight barely penetrated the dense foliage, casting eerie, shifting shapes across the ground.

For a long moment, there was nothing but silence. And then, just as I was about to dismiss it as my imagination, I saw it—a pair of eyes, glowing faintly in the darkness, watching me.

My heart skipped a beat. I stepped back, my pulse quickening as the figure stepped into the light. It was a wolf, but not one I recognized.

Its fur was a dark, mottled gray, almost black, and its eyes—those eyes were a sickly, unnatural yellow. It bared its teeth at me in a silent snarl, and I could feel the hostility radiating off it in waves.

Who are you? I wondered, my mind racing. But before I could do anything, the wolf turned and disappeared back into the shadows, melting into the night as if it had never been there at all.

I stood there, staring after it, my mind buzzing with questions. I had never seen a wolf like that in our territory. And the way it had looked at me… there was something almost human in those eyes, something that sent a shiver down my spine.

A cold wind swept through the clearing, and I wrapped my arms tighter around myself, suddenly feeling very alone. The sense of foreboding I had felt earlier was back, stronger now, pressing in on me from all sides. I needed to get home, to figure out what the hell was going on.

But just as I turned to leave, a whisper drifted through the air, so faint I almost missed it. It wasn’t a sound, exactly, more like a thought that wasn’t mine, brushing against the edges of my consciousness.

They’re coming, Sera. And when they do, nothing will be the same.

I whipped around, scanning the shadows, but there was nothing. No sign of the wolf, no sign of anything. Just the empty darkness, pressing in on all sides.

My heart pounded in my chest as I hurried back to my cabin, the cryptic warning echoing in my mind. What did it mean? Who was coming? And why did it feel like this was only the beginning?

By the time I reached the safety of my home, I was trembling, my mind racing with a thousand possibilities, none of them good. I locked the door behind me, but it did little to calm the storm brewing inside.

I sank onto the bed, running a hand through my hair, trying to make sense of everything. The rejection, the prophecy, the strange wolf, and that warning… it was too much, all at once. But one thing was clear—I couldn’t ignore this. Whatever was happening, it was coming for me, whether I was ready or not.

And I had a feeling that by the time it was over, my life—and the entire Silverwood Pack—would be changed forever.