Blood still dripped from my nose, silver instead of red. The Moon Goddess's words echoed in my skull as the pack hall erupted in chaos around me.'Well, that was dramatic,' Rona commented. 'A goddess shows up and suddenly everyone loses their minds.'She wasn't wrong. The elders were shouting over each other, the rogues were still kneeling, and Silas—still on the ground where I'd put him—stared at me like he was seeing a ghost."Your eyes," he said quietly. "They're silver."I reached up, feeling warmth trickle down my cheeks. Not tears. Blood."The ritual site," I said. The certainty hit me like a physical blow. "I need to go to the ritual site. Now."'Bad idea,' Rona warned. 'Very bad idea.'But I was already moving. The underground temple called to me, a pull I couldn't ignore. Footsteps behind me told me Silas was following."Stella, wait—""Either help me or stay out of my way," I snapped, not slowing down. "I just beat you in front of your pack. Don't make me do it again."'I vo
The first of Viktor's altered wolves cleared our barrier with impossible speed. Its body was wrong—limbs too long, joints bending backwards, skin rippling as partial shifts cascaded across its form. One of our guards, raised his silver-loaded rifle and fired. The bullet hit center mass.The creature didn't even flinch."It's not stopping," He said, backing up. "Why isn't it—"The altered wolf's jaw unhinged, splitting its face in half. Before Mark could fire again, it had him. Teeth sank into his shoulder, through the tactical vest like it was paper. But it didn't just bite—it started shifting while its mouth was full of Mark's flesh. Fangs extended, retracted, extended again, shredding meat from bone.Mark's scream cut off in a gurgle.'Well, that's new,' Rona commented grimly. 'And disgusting. Can we kill it now?'Three more guards opened fire. Silver bullets tore through the creature's body, but it kept eating, kept shifting. Only when they finally hit its brain did it collapse.Bu
The temple stairs were slick with blood. Three of Viktor's rejects had followed us down, their bodies contorting as they moved. One's spine cracked audibly with each step, vertebrae pushing through skin before being dragged back in.'Stop admiring the freaks and kill them,' Rona growled.I shifted—not full wolf, just what I needed. Claws extended as I met the first one. It lunged with too many teeth in a jaw that split four ways. I ducked under its strike, drove my claws up through its throat and into its brain. No healing from that.Silas took the second one with a silver blade to the eye. But the third—the third got past us. It caught one of Kane's men who'd followed us down. We watched as it literally pulled him apart, its muscles shifting and multiplying as it tore.The sound of Viktor's approach cut through the man's screams. His footsteps were wrong, arrhythmic. Like he was shifting with each step."Little Stella," his voice echoed down the stairs. "Always running to the temple.
Angela's blood spread across the temple floor, mixing with the silver light from the ritual platform. The black chemicals in her system made it steam where it touched stone.'Finish it,' Rona urged, her voice straining as the ritual pulled at our connection. 'Before he—'Viktor's laugh cut her off. The sound rattled out like breaking glass. His body convulsed, muscles bulging and splitting his skin as he grew. Eight legs burst from his torso—four wolf, four human, bent at unnatural angles. His chest split vertically, revealing a second mouth lined with both fangs and human teeth. His original head remained, but the skin had peeled back, leaving exposed muscle that pulsed and shifted. Three more wolf heads emerged from his shoulders, their snouts too long, jaws unhinging to show tongues that writhed like snakes. Yellow eyes opened across his body—in his chest, along his arms, between the joints of his legs. Black veins spread from the injection ports in his neck, carrying chemicals tha
(Stella Harrison) The world burned in silence. At least, that’s how it felt as I stumbled through the wreckage of what had once been Blood Moon territory. My ears still rang from the cacophony of battle—snarls, screams, the wet tear of flesh—but now there was only ash and the metallic tang of blood clotting in the air. My blood. Silver and red streaked my arms, crusted under my nails, a reminder of what I’d lost. Rona. Her absence carved a hollow ache in my chest, like someone had reached in and ripped out a lung. I kept waiting for her voice to slice through the quiet, some crude joke or biting remark about the state of my hair. But there was nothing. Just the wind whistling through shattered windows and the distant wail of sirens. Humans were coming. I’d seen the helicopters first, their spotlights cutting through the smoke like accusing fingers. Then the phones—dozens of them, held aloft by trembling hands from rooftops and shattered cars. Cameras zoomed in on the aftermath: Vik
The frost on the windows glowed blue in the predawn light, jagged crystals clawing at the glass like skeletal fingers. I hadn’t slept. Couldn’t. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw it again—the True Enemy’s void-black gaze, Viktor’s melting flesh, Silas’s blood pooling on temple stone. The fire had died hours ago, leaving the cabin air sharp with pine resin and the metallic tang of my own sweat. Andrea’s ghost flickered by the hearth, her form wavering between corporeal and smoke. She’d been silent since materializing, those moonlit eyes tracking my every twitch. I hated how she looked at me—like I was still the scrawny kid who’d cried when her first shift tore open her palms. I snapped first. “Where were you?” The words tore free, raw and serrated. Andrea’s spectral shoulders stiffened. “Stella—” “When he locked me in the cellar for three days after my first failed shift? When he sold me to that fur trader from the Iron Claw pack because I was ‘defective’?” My voice climbed, scra
Age 15. The Ice Cave. The wind is a living thing here—a feral, snarling beast that gnaws at the edges of the world. It claws through layers of sealskin and caribou hide, needling my bones with a cold so sharp it feels like betrayal. My breath crystallizes before it leaves my lips, and the snow underfoot groans like a dying animal. The meat strapped to my chest is a furnace, its warmth leaching through my furs, a guilty secret pressed against my ribs. Rabbit. Fresh-killed. Stolen. The ice cave is a jagged scar in the glacier’s flank, its entrance half-buried under drifts. I dig with bare hands, the cold searing my fingertips raw. Inside, the walls glisten like the throat of some primordial creature, veins of cobalt and iron ore threading through the ice. Lira huddles in the deepest recess, her body swallowed by a nest of mangy pelts. Fox, maybe. Wolf. Discards. “Viktor?” Her voice is a moth’s wing, brittle and fraying. I toss the rabbit at her feet. The meat thuds dully, steam
The tundra is a liar. It promises nothing but takes everything—your warmth, your voice, your name. By the time the Unbound found me, seven years had hardened into ice inside my chest. Seven years of chewing leather belts until my gums bled, licking frost off jagged rocks just to wet my tongue. Seven years of listening to Vorath’s voice coil around my thoughts like smoke, whispering things that made the cold feel like a lover. I didn’t care if I lived. I didn’t care if I died. But then Mara stepped out of the snow, her scarred lips twisted into a grin, and something inside me cracked. A sliver of curiosity, sharp and cold, like the edge of a blade pressed to a thawing vein.She stood taller than the others, her shoulders draped in a pelt stitched from wolf hides and something darker—bear, maybe, or human. The scar splitting her lips gleamed in the weak light, a pale thread weaving through weathered skin. Her eyes were flint, sharp enough to spark.“Viktor Frostfang,” she said, her voic
The council meeting that night was grim. Bella took notes as we described what we'd witnessed, her face growing paler with each detail."Forced conversion," she murmured. "He's found a way to override the rejection response.""At what cost?" I demanded. "That wolf was being torn apart from the inside.""The cost doesn't matter to Logan," Silas said. "Only the result.""We can't let this happen," Mason declared. "The eclipse ritual—if he perfects this process, makes it permanent...""He'll have an army of controllable hybrids," I finished. "Each one as strong as three normal wolves, immune to silver, loyal only to him.""So we stop him," Eliza said, steel in her voice despite her lingering grief. "We hit the quarry before the eclipse. Destroy his lab, free the captives.""It's not that simple," Silas cautioned. "The quarry is a fortress now. We'd lose half the pack trying to breach it.""Then we need another approach," I said. All eyes turned to me. "Logan wants me. My blood. I'm the k
The quarry lay in a natural depression, surrounded by pine forest and abandoned mining equipment. From our vantage point on the ridge, I could see the extent of Logan's modifications—new structures, camouflaged entrances, subtle signs of extensive underground construction."They've been busy," Eliza whispered, her enhanced vision picking out details in the growing darkness.Marcus crouched beside her, scanning the perimeter. He'd barely looked at me during the journey, maintaining a careful distance that spoke of either respect or fear. Possibly both."Guards at all access points," he reported. "But they're focused outward. Not expecting approach from above.""The main entrance leads to a vertical shaft," Silas said, consulting hand-drawn maps from the previous reconnaissance. "Elevators down to the primary chamber.""Too exposed," I noted. "Alternative routes?""Old mining tunnels." He pointed to a cluster of buildings near the quarry's edge. "They connect to the main chamber from mu
My father's body lay on the funeral pyre, wrapped in ceremonial cloth. I watched from the back of the crowd as Zeta Clara performed the traditional rites, her voice carrying across the silent gathering. The morning was bitter cold, my breath forming clouds that dissipated like smoke.I felt nothing.Pack members cast sideways glances at me, expecting grief, tears, some display of daughterly sorrow. Instead, I stood rigid in my formal blacks, face blank, hands clasped behind my back to hide their steadiness."The Beta served with honor," Zeta Clara intoned. "His sacrifice in the battle against Silver Claw will be remembered..."The words washed over me, meaningless. Honor. Sacrifice. These weren't the words that came to mind when I thought of Beta Andres Harrison. Father. Abuser. The man who'd blamed me for my mother's death for twenty-two years.Silas stood at the front with the other pack leaders, head bowed in respect. Through our bond, I felt his concern—a steady pulse of worry dir
We resumed walking, both lost in thought. The implications were staggering—Logan using the Solstice for his hybrid transformation, while we potentially used it to restore our pack's abilities. Two opposing forces, drawing on the same celestial power.We reached pack territory as dawn broke, wolves emerging from their homes to witness our return. A ragged cheer went up at the sight of Silas, relief spreading visibly through the gathered crowd.Zeta Ruth rushed forward to assess his injuries, but he waved her off. "Check the others first," he insisted. "I'm healing."In the commotion of our return, I noticed Liam pushing through the crowd, his expression urgent."Stella," he called. "Come quickly. It's Bella."My stomach dropped. "What's happened?""She went into labor an hour ago. Something's wrong—Zeta Clara says the baby is coming too fast."I glanced at Silas, who nodded. "Go. I'll join you when I can."I followed Liam to the infirmary, fear quickening my steps. If Bella's labor was
"Blood calls to blood," he continued smoothly. "Bond calls to bond. Did you really think I wouldn't anticipate your approach? The tunnels were the obvious choice once we secured the perimeter."There was no point in continuing the charade. I pushed aside the ceiling panel and dropped into the room, landing in a crouch. My father followed a moment later."Right on schedule," Logan said, unfazed. "Allow me to introduce our investors. They've been most eager to meet you."The three visitors turned, and I realized with shock that they weren't human or wolf—their eyes had the same silver sheen as the hybrids, but their faces were fully human, their movements natural."Successful integrations," Logan explained, noting my surprise. "First-generation hybrids, now fully stabilized. They've been funding our research for years.""You're playing with forces you don't understand," I said, eyes fixed on Silas. His face was bruised, one eye swollen shut, but he was fully conscious, watching me inten
Mason and Liam returned with good news—the old sewage tunnels were intact, partially collapsed in places but navigable. Better yet, they showed no signs of surveillance or recent human activity."There's a junction box here," Mason explained, marking a spot on the blueprint. "From there, maintenance tunnels lead to the main building, the east wing, and the old spa complex. We found signs of recent activity in the east wing tunnel.""That's where they're keeping Silas," I said with certainty. Through our bond, I'd felt him being moved earlier, the disorientation and pain as guards dragged him somewhere.The rescue team assembled at nightfall—myself, my father, Mason, and six other wolves chosen for strength and stealth. Liam had wanted to come, but I'd refused. He was too young, too inexperienced, and had already risked enough."The objective is extraction only," my father reminded everyone as we gathered at the territory's edge. "We locate Silas, neutralize immediate threats, and with
"We can't just storm the place," my father said, pointing to the satellite images spread across the council table. "The Blackwater Resort has one road in, three miles of shoreline, and Logan's people watching every approach."Four hours of sleep hadn't been enough. My body ached, my head throbbed, and the bond with Silas pulsed like an infected wound. I could feel him—alive, in pain, conscious now—but couldn't reach him."Then we don't use the obvious approaches," I countered, leaning over the map. "What about underwater? The east side of the peninsula?"Mason shook his head. "Too many cameras. They've set up a surveillance perimeter extending two hundred yards into the lake."The council room held every high-ranking pack member who could be spared from border patrol. Twelve hours since we'd lost Silas, and tension hung thick in the air. An Alpha in enemy hands was more than a tactical problem—it was a psychological wound."What about the old sewage tunnels?" Bella suggested, pointing
We made it to the stairwell without incident, but as we descended toward the ground floor, a voice called out from above."Hey! Where are you taking them?"I turned to see a guard leaning over the railing, suspicious."Safe zone C," I replied, hoping it meant something.His eyes narrowed. "There is no safe zone C."So much for bluffing. "Run!" I shouted, shoving Liam and Eliza ahead of me down the stairs. Silas took up the rear as guards shouted and gave chase.We burst through the ground floor door into chaos—alarms blaring, security personnel rushing about, voices shouting contradictory orders. Perfect cover for our escape, if we could navigate through it."This way," Silas urged, guiding us toward a side exit. We were almost there when a figure stepped into our path.Logan.He looked different from the delivery room—back in his customary suit, composed and coldly amused. Behind him stood two hybrids, their unnatural forms partially concealed by loose clothing."Stella," he greeted
I finished preparing, strapping silver knives to my thighs and slipping a third into my boot. The pendant warmed against my chest, somehow comforting despite my lingering suspicion of my father's motives.We gathered at the eastern edge of pack territory as twilight deepened into night. Silas, Liam, Eliza, and me—a small team, unencumbered by weapons except for the silver blades we each carried. Speed and stealth were our priorities."Lake Carson is fifteen miles east," Silas briefed us. "The resort sits on a peninsula jutting into the water. We'll approach from the forest side, using the trees for cover. Once there, we observe only. We're looking for security patterns, entrance points, and Angela's location within the complex.""What about hybrids?" Liam asked, nervously fingering the silver knife at his belt."Avoid them," Silas said firmly. "We're not there to engage. If spotted, retreat immediately to the rendezvous point." He pointed to a location on the map he'd brought. "Questi