Chapter 1 The Luna Ceremony

SIERRA'S POV

The night of the Luna Ceremony was the kind that made even the mountains hold their breath.

Moonlight spilled like fire over the courtyard, turning stone and steel into something holy. Every torch flickered in rhythm with the wind, every banner of the Moonbane Pack rippled under the blue sky. The air hummed with anticipation, with the scent of wolves and something divine.

And somewhere in the middle of it all stood me.

My name, Sierra. The kennel girl. The lowest omega in Moonbane.

I tugged at the hem of the borrowed gown that hung off my back. It was too big, a hand-me-down from one of the Beta's daughters, yellowed lace, uneven sewing. I'd spent the afternoon scrubbing mud from it just to look halfway decent. It didn't matter. No amount of scrubbing or praying could hide the truth of what I was.

Still, I stood there among the pack, heart hammering, trying not to fidget, trying not to let my nerves show.

Every year, the ceremony was the same: the priestess would call forth the unmated wolves, the Moon Goddess would reveal Her will, and some lucky she-wolf would walk away chosen by fate. Usually, the mates were Betas or warriors. Never an omega.

But the rules said every unmated wolf must attend. So here I was, a shadow among beauty.

It wasn't hard. People didn't see omegas unless they wanted work done. I kept to the back, watching as the Alpha stood at the front of the courtyard.

Isaak.

Our Alpha.

Even from a distance, I could feel the pull of his presence, the commanding power that came with his bloodline. He was tall, broad-shouldered, wrapped in a dark ceremonial cloak that caught the light like storm clouds. His hair gleamed black under the moonlight, and his eyes, gods, his eyes, were gray like winter rain. Cold and sharp like his chiselled jawline. He was the most handsome man I'd ever seen and every she-wolf in the crowd watched him like he was the moon itself.

He was perfect.

And he was everything I was not.

I'd seen him up close only a few times, passing through the training yard or leading a patrol. I'd never spoken to him. I'd never dared. If he'd noticed me at all, it was only because I was a pest in his way.

Still, a part of me, some foolish, naive part, had always wondered what it might feel like to be noticed.

The priestess's voice rose, cutting through the night. "On this sacred night, under the gaze of the Moon Goddess, we call upon Her to reveal the bond of fated souls."

The crowd fell silent.

The priestess lifted a bowl of shimmering water, glowing faintly with moonlight, and dipped her fingers into it. One by one, she called the names of the unmated women, marking their foreheads with a touch of silver. Each time, a faint ripple of power moved through the air.

Some women glowed faintly, their destined mates stepping forward with tears and smiles. Others didn't, and returned to their places with polite disappointment.

And then,

"Sierra of Moonbane."

My name.

I froze, because definitely I'd heard wrong.

The priestess looked around. "Sierra?"

The crowd turned with her.

Dozens of eyes found me, eyes filled with curiosity and disdain at a lowly omega like me.

I wanted to disappear. I wanted to melt into the shadows and pretend I'd never existed. But the priestess's gaze softened. "The Goddess calls all," she said gently.

My legs moved. Each step felt heavier than the last as I walked forward through the parted crowd. When I reached the altar, I knelt. The marble was cold beneath my knees. I kept my head bowed.

The priestess dipped her fingers again into the moonlit water and touched them to my forehead.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then everything did.

Light, pure, silver, blinding, flared around me. It rushed through my chest, my veins, my very soul. My breath caught, and a strange, wild warmth spread through me. My wolf stirred, howling in recognition.

Then I felt it.

The pull.

My head jerked up, and my eyes locked onto him.

Alpha Isaak.

The light between us pulsed, forming a shimmering bond of silver flame that everyone could see.

Gasps rippled through the courtyard.

I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. All I could feel was the bond, his scent wrapping around me like a storm, his heartbeat echoing in my chest, our wolves wanting to claim eachother. It was intoxicating.

I saw the moment he felt it too. His eyes widened for a heartbeat, his body going rigid as the light flickered across his chest.

And then his expression changed.

Shock turned to fury.

His jaw clenched, his eyes darkened, and his entire aura shifted. The whispers died instantly. The air itself seemed to freeze.

He took a slow step toward me.

My voice barely made it out. "Alpha..."

His eyes cut into me. "No."

It was a single word that cracked through the courtyard like thunder.

I blinked, trembling. "The Goddess-"

"I don't care what the Goddess says." His tone was icy, controlled. "This cannot be."

The priestess gasped. "Alpha Isaak, you cannot reject Her will-"

His gaze never left mine. "I can. And I will."

Each word hit like a gut punch.

I felt the crowd's shock ripple through the air, the collective horror of what he was about to do. But I couldn't move.

Kieran stepped closer until his shadow fell over me, his authority rolling off him.

"You are not meant for me," he said, his voice low, harsh. "You are an omega. Weak. Fragile. You would break under the weight of this pack, and I will not let the Moon's mistake destroy what I've built."

Something inside me cracked.

"Please," I whispered, barely audible. "Don't-"

His jaw tightened. "I, Isaak of the Moonbane Pack, reject you, Sierra, as my mate and Luna."

My eyes watered

A small whimper tore from my throat as the bond snapped. I fell forward, clutching my heart. The pain wasn't physical, it was soul-deep, ripping something sacred from me.

The light between us shattered into fragments of silver that scattered across the stones and faded.

The crowd gasped, but no one moved.

Isaak's voice came again, distant, cold. "Let this ceremony continue. The Goddess has made her choice, but I make mine."

And then he turned away.

Just like that.

The man the Goddess herself had chosen for me walked back to the altar without looking back.

I knelt there, shaking, tears burning my eyes. The pain was so fierce I thought it might kill me.

The priestess knelt beside me, her hand hovering over my shoulder. "Child, you must breathe. The bond's breaking is agony, but it will pass."

Pass.

No. It didn't feel like something that would pass. It felt like something had been torn out of me forever.

The whispers started again, low and sharp as knives.

"She's cursed."

"She must have tricked the Goddess."

"The Alpha was right to reject her."

Their words blurred together, meaningless sounds against my ears.

I pushed myself up on shaking arms. My vision swam, but I forced myself to stand. I wouldn't give them the satisfaction of seeing me crawl.

Isaak was still standing before the altar, his back turned, shoulders rigid.

I stared at him for one last moment. The man fate had chosen for me. The man who had looked into my eyes and rejected not just me, but the will of the Moon.

A tremor of something dark and new stirred beneath my skin, hurt, yes, but also anger.

If the Goddess had truly chosen him, then She had made a cruel mistake.

The priestess called my name softly, but I didn't answer. I turned and walked out of the courtyard, the moonlight catching on my tear-streaked face.

Each step was pain, but I didn't stop.

Behind me, the ceremony went on as if nothing had happened. The drums resumed. The torches burned. The Alpha stood untouched.

But as I crossed the threshold into the darkness beyond, I knew something had changed.