The Covenant of the Scarlet Fang is absolute. At the Lunar Rite,the future Alpha must be chosen by the oracle to claim his Luna—bound by an eternal covenant. I loved Damien.We grew up together. For him,I poured every drop of my soul into my Moon-Bound Shard,praying for the bond to ignite. Seven years.Seven full moons. Every time,the Shard remained a cold,mocking void. Tonight was the eighth year. I stood in the shadows of the temple. A voice cut through the dark—low,urgent,unmistakably his mother’s. “Damien,you swore you’d marry Elara!” “Why did you use forbidden magic to mask her scent for seven years? You turned her Moon-Bound Shard into a lifeless stone! And you silently watched her weep—didn’t it break your heart?” The disappointment in her voice was impossible to miss. Damien let out a short,cold laugh. “Of course it hurts.But Lila is back from the Outlands.Her wolf-spirit is unstable. I promised to use my Alpha power to stabilize her for seven years. Besides,that fool won’t marry anyone else anyway. Next year,I’ll give her the grandest ceremony the pack has ever seen.” He tossed the stone into the cold brazier.It shattered. In the shadows,something in me quietly let go.Alaric,my grandfather,the High Elder,once told me:The Covenant only gives us eight chances. If the eighth oracle is destined to be blank…fine. I’ll just find another Alpha to marry. His voice floated back through the dark. “The sound of stone cracking is much more pleasant than your sobbing,don’t you think?” Damien was busy adjusting his silver-threaded cuffs,his eyes fixed on the temple doors. Outside,the moonlight was like liquid silver. The elite of the Scarlet Fang had gathered—a tide of low growls and proud silhouettes. The eighth Rite.My last chance. He brushed past me,heading straight for Lila. She stood in the middle of a cluster of high-ranking she-wolves. The moment she spotted Damien,she broke free and threw herself into his arms like a frightened fawn. “Damien!”Lila’s eyes were red.Her voice came out in a whimper. “They said I’m just a lowly Omega…they said I’m a sinner for standing between you and Lady Elara…” Damien furrowed his brow,his fierce Alpha presence sweeping the room before locking onto the whispering she-wolves.“Who dares question her?My will is the law of the Scarlet Fang—Lila is my honored guest.Anyone who causes her trouble will pay the price…with me.”He didn’t even spare me a glance.I waited for the familiar sting of tears.They never came. But I just watched him,my eyes as cold as the moon
A heavy silence swallowed the hall.The she-wolves’fur bristled with fear;their eyes pleaded as I emerged from the shadows. For seven years,I had been Damien’s rightful fiancée. I was the only noble-born she-wolf he ever tolerated by his side. Aside from the cursed Lunar Rite,he denied me nothing. They expected me to lash out at Lila,to leave marks of fury.At the very least,to shed tears.They thought I would cry and demand to know why he was protecting her—just like the last seven years. But this time,I simply brushed a speck of moon-dust from my gown. Taking a goblet of blood-red wine from a passing servant’s silver tray,I took a slow,deliberate sip. The icy liquid slid down my throat,extinguishing the last flicker of warmth I once held for him. “Lady Elara…are you just going to let this happen?” A wolf whispered tentatively. A smile touched my lips—cold as frost. “Let the future Alpha play the hero.Why would I get in the way?Besides,I’m far more curious whether the Moon Goddess has anything to say to me this year.” Damien went rigid. He snapped his head around to look at me,clearly blindsided. In the past,I would have already bared my fangs,sobbing and demanding Lila be banished from our lands. But tonight,I was as tranquil as a stranger passing through. A flash of irritation crossed his eyes. Releasing Lila,he closed the distance between us with long,aggressive strides. “Elara,what tantrum is this now?Lila’s got a fragile wolf spirit—she can’t handle any shock. You’re the heir to an ancient bloodline. So why not show some grace?”
I looked at the man I had loved for over a decade,and suddenly,he was nothing but a stranger. Seven years.Over two thousand five hundred days and nights. I hid my claws. I choked on ancient rules. All to be his perfect Luna. To ensure my Moon-Bound Shard would be chosen by the oracle,I had bribed the High Priest.I had groveled to his mother,the reigning Luna.I had bled myself dry. And for what? For him to tell me to show some grace. For my heart to lie shattered,nothing but ashes at the bottom of a cold brazier. “Damien.” I set my goblet down. The crystal clinked sharply against the stone table,the sound cutting through the heavy tension.”I’m not throwing a tantrum.I actually think you’re right.Miss Lila’s spirit is terribly delicate. She absolutely needs a powerful Alpha to stay by her side and heal her.” Damien froze. He stared intently into my eyes,searching desperately for a flicker of jealousy, a trace of wounded pride. But there was nothing.Only an endless frozen tundra. The realization that he was losing his grip on me sent a flicker of panic through his chest. He reached out to grab my wrist. “Fine.I’m glad you understand.Once tonight is over,next year—” “There is no next year.” I stepped back,easily dodging his grasp. My tone was as casual as if I were commenting on the moonlight. “The High Elder says the Covenant grants but eight chances. Tonight marks the eighth. If the oracle remains blank, our betrothal shall be void. Then,we are free to find our own paths.”
Damien scoffed as if he’d just heard a hilarious joke. “How many times are you going to play this same game,Elara?” “Three years ago,you said you’d go visit human cities—but you just stood at the border,howling and crying out for me.Two years ago,you demanded to break off our engagement. Then you stood outside all night in a blizzard,nearly freezing your wolf spirit. You really think you can leave me?” He was so sure of himself.So arrogant.He even looked at me with pity. To him,I was nothing more than a shadow.How could a shadow ever break away from the light? Beside him,Lila covered her mouth to hide a smirk.Her eyes mocked me. “Elara,I know you’re hurting.But Damien was only trying to help me—don’t say things like that just to get back at him.What if people take you seriously?What Alpha would ever come near you after that? Everyone in the North already knows you’d never settle for anyone but Damien.You’re already a laughingstock.” A laughingstock? She was right.For Damien,I had made myself a complete joke. I stared at Lila’s fake,innocent face. The words I had overheard at the temple door came back to me: “That fool won’t marry anyone else anyway.” To them,my devotion was sheer foolishness.My loyalty,nothing but weakness and worthlessness. “You worry too much,Miss Lila.” I tucked a strand of silver hair behind my ear.I smiled at her,gracious and unhurried. “My bloodline comes straight from the Moon Goddess. My family’s lands are vast and rich. Alphas who wanted to bond with me?They’d stretch from the Northern Peaks all the way to the Southern Coast.” “But you,Miss Lila…” My gaze dropped to her hands,still clinging weakly to Damien’s arm. “I heard you suffered in the Outlands for seven years. Is that why you’re still so frail?You can’t even stand without help? Should I call a Druid for you? Maybe we should drag you straight to the Cliff of Rest,just to check if your wolf spirit is dying?”
“You!”Lila’s face paled.Tears welled up in her eyes on cue,spilling down her cheeks. “Damien,look how she treats me…” Damien’s expression darkened. “Elara!You’ve crossed the line!Apologize to Lila!” “Apologize?” I raised an eyebrow. “For what?Because she’s the one you treasure above all else? Or because she’s a fragile Omega who needs everyone’s pity? Damien,did you forget?Tonight is my stage. Until the Moon Goddess’s blessing begins,I am still your official fiancée. What’s wrong with putting an outsider in her place?” Whispers broke out among the pack. The current Luna hurried over. Seeing the scene,she frowned deeply. “Stop this!Haven’t you embarrassed yourselves enough?” She shot Damien a sharp look,then turned to me with an unreadable look. “Elara,it’s almost time.Don’t let someone irrelevant cost you everything.” The Luna truly cared for me. She genuinely wanted me as her daughter-in-law to unite our powerful bloodlines. Too bad her precious son had destroyed it all with his own hands. Damien took a deep breath,suppressing his anger. He wrapped an arm around Lila’s shoulders and patted her comfortingly. Then he glared at me,his voice ice-cold. “Fine.If you want to play games,let’s begin. I can’t wait to see if you’re still this sharp-tongued when the oracle gives you nothing!” He turned and strode toward the high altar in the center of the temple. There sat the giant Moon Basin,filled with sacred spring water.My judgment stand. I watched him walk away.My gaze went cold. Damien,you think you control everything. You have no idea how swiftly the hunter becomes the hunted.
In the center of the temple,moonlight poured through the crystal dome. It cast a holy glow.Every wolf’s eyes locked onto the ancient Moon Basin. By tradition,the basin held hundreds of”Moon-Bound Shards”from eligible noble she-wolves.When the ritual began,the Alpha would reach into the basin,guided by the Moon Goddess to his destined mate’s shard. If chosen,they were fated mates,engaged on the spot. If not,their fate was delayed to the next year. For the past seven years,I had watched my shard drop into the basin with so much hope. And every time,Damien pulled out a dead stone. I had thought it was bad luck. I thought the Goddess was testing our love. Until today.Today I learned the truth. My shard was never in that basin. He had used forbidden magic to replace my shard with a dead stone— with his own hands. “Go on,Elara,”the Luna encouraged from below. “I had the High Priest read the stars.He said your destined mate will appear tonight. You will succeed.” Maybe.But those stars weren’t shining for Damien. I lifted my gown and walked up the steps. Damien stood by the basin.One hand in his pocket.Utterly arrogant. He looked at me like I was a pup throwing a tantrum. He leaned in,lowering his voice so only I could hear. “Elara,apologize to Lila now.If you do,I promise the Goddess will’choose’you next year. Actually,you won’t even have to wait that long.Be a good girl.Stop bullying Lila,and I might consider ending this boring game early.”
To him,my seven years of suffering meant nothing. My youth.My dignity.It was all just a game to him. A game he could pause whenever he felt like it. I stopped.I stood right in front of him. We were only inches apart,but a bottomless abyss lay between us. “Damien,”I said softly.”Do you really think you’re my only choice?” Damien froze for a second.Then,he laughed out loud. “Who else?” “What other Alpha could handle the terrible temper of your ancient bloodline? Besides the Crimson Fangs,what other pack is good enough to ally with your family? Accept your fate,Elara.You are destined to be my Luna.And mine alone.” He was so confident. He thought he held my weakness. He thought he could trample my boundaries forever. I dropped my gaze to hide my smirk. “Is that so?Then let’s see who really needs to accept their fate.” I took a deep breath.Slowly,I raised my right hand and plunged it into the freezing Moon Spring. My fingertips brushed against the icy Moon-Bound Shards.One.Two.Dozens. The temple was dead silent. Lila stood at the front of the pack.A winner’s smirk played on her lips. She knew my shard wasn’t in the basin. She was waiting for me to make a fool of myself. She wanted to watch me break down and cry in front of the entire pack. Damien casually looked away. He already knew the outcome.Or so he thought. I closed my eyes. Finally,my fingertips brushed against a stone. Its texture was unmistakably different. Before the ritual,during the crowd’s chaos,I had my loyal guard slip it in. It was my ultimate backup plan.My final way out. My eyes snapped open. With a flick of my wrist,I pulled the shard out of the water. “Alpha Heir,”I called out. I held the shard high.My voice rang clear and loud across the entire temple. “It seems your little guarantee has just expired.”
The smug indifference vanished from Damien’s face. His eyes darted to the shard in my hand. A flicker of confusion broke through his arrogant facade. Impossible.He had crushed my original Moon-Bound Shard with his own hands. He’d even used dark magic to mask my scent. To be absolutely sure,he had double-checked the sacred basin right before the ceremony began.There was no chance any stone in there would react to me. “What kind of stunt are you pulling with that fake rock,Elara?” He scoffed,reaching out to snatch the shard from my grip. “Stop making a scene.You’re embarrassing us in front of all the Northern packs.” “Whether it’s a fake or not,why don’t we let the Elder read the decree?” I stepped aside,dodging his hand. A fierce,untamed smile broke across my face—a smile he had never once seen in all seven years I had spent shrinking myself for him. “Since the Alpha Heir doesn’t believe me, I’ll ask a respected Elder to read the Goddess’s will.Alaric,would you do me the honor?Tell us which Alpha this rune points to.” Leaning on his bone staff,Alaric walked steadily onto the dais and took the shard. Under the moonlight,a complex crest began to glow on the stone’s surface. Alaric’s aged eyes widened. Suddenly,a booming,joyous laugh erupted from his chest. “Yes!Yes!The Moon Goddess has spoken!This is her true will!” Unease clawed at Damien’s chest. Forgetting all protocol,he lunged forward. “Elder,let me see that!” But Alaric snapped his hand shut over the stone. He turned to face the hundreds of elite wolves below. His ancient voice thundered across the sanctuary, “By the ancient pact and the guidance of the Moon Goddess, Elara has received her decree on her eighth blessing! She has found her fated mate!A destined match!”
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