Chapter 1 0001

Kieran's Point Of View

When I first heard from my gossip friend, Mirian, that Alpha Colten wanted everyone in the pack to gather in a white fur square to witness the Moon Goddess' revelation of his mate under the glare of the full moon, I couldn't believe her words.

Alpha Colten lost his luna only a year ago, and judging by how close the couple had been in the past years before the luna's demise, and the story of their strong love for each other from childhood till they marked each other, I couldn't imagine he could sprout from his grief and decide he was getting himself a new mate.

Come on, that gossip was the worst I've heard so far. I've heard too much gossip from Mirian, but trust me, I believed every one of them because, unlike me, the lowest of the low-lives who serve in the palace, Mirian, backed by her uncle's influence, was the alpha's cup bearer.

She knew everything happening in the throne room, in the upper chambers, in the Elders' court, but I still did not believe this one gossip until now.

How invitations flew so fast was something I thought I should be wary of. Maybe, every notable person in our pack and other packs beyond ours believed that Alpha Colten should not perish in his grief. They seemed to have all advised him to do the needful and move on. Hence, their massive turn-up.

I could recognize a few of the foreign bigwigs who were present. There was the tall one known as the Frost. His real name according to Mirian, was Alpha Alfred of White Lake pack.

And the other one with a scar on the face was Alpha Rogan of Oakwood Pack.

I could pick him out easily because he was the youngest of the alphas. And Mirian was usually particular about him. She always spoke of how chaotic his rise to the throne of Alpha was because his uncle wanted to lay claim to the throne room of Oakwood pack after his father's demise.

Trust me, Mirian is a good storyteller. I bet if you heard from her lips how the chaos started and dropped from climax to denouement, you'd sure be marveled.

That's the reason why she was particular about him. As for the rest, I know nothing about them because either I've not seen them before, or Mirian never said anything about them.

Anyways, Mirian was not anywhere in sight as we filed into White Fur Square. It was the biggest gathering space in our territory and had served many public functions like the crowning of a new alpha, marking of mates, and declaration of war.

But the square has one problem and one wicked law. The entrance is slim and we all must file in through it by our ranks. I'm an omega, so, I was among the last set to file in when the bell to file rang.

In the square, everyone was meant to take seats, but trust me, there was none to take. Alpha Colten, on the other hand, was already waiting in the high place with the priest of the moon goddess, Rasputin, beside him.

William, his beta, stood below the high place, with ten gammas posted around the high place. The alphas of the packs beyond ours stepped forward and formed a web around the high place. They were about ten in number.

I looked around to find Mirian, but I couldn't find her. Had she been in the square, she would have walked up to me and whispered in my ears the names of the alphas and what they were known for, except the two I knew already.

But having seen she was nowhere to be found, I had to focus, but not until I felt something bite down on my belly and bring me down to my knees.

A sudden cry left my lips, and everyone's eyes drifted towards me as I covered my mouth with both hands and made to stand upright again but it bit down once more and to make it worse, I felt a strong scent surround me and fill my nostrils, like someone had singled me out so that I would perceive no other scent but his.

I clenched my teeth and held my belly with both hands to subside the pain. I couldn't stand upright anymore, and everyone stopped looking up to the high place and turned to me with strong disgust on their face.

I was disrupting the event, and I didn't notice that until the chants on the high place stopped.

Rasputin, the priest, seemed to have been disturbed by my quiet painful moans. He rang the bell from the high place and everyone's attention, including mine, returned to him.

"The Moon Goddess has done it!" he roared, his voice hoarse and void of mercy.

The square broke into a strong murmur and everyone parted from me. It was then I realized how long and vast the path to the high place was. I had somehow thought it was that close when we entered the square, but now, it seemed too long as everyone parted from me.

I managed to stand upright, with my hands on my lower abdomen, but the cramp came once again and I screamed. The scent grew stronger, and I felt my wolf rumble inside of me. It was either struggling to take over my body, or it was fighting something.

"Oh, dear, it can't be." I heard someone say as I wriggled in pain and crouched on the floor.

I struggled to stand upright once more, but the cramps pinned me to the floor like I was being possessed by some demon, and the next thing I knew, everything blacked out all of a sudden.

The next I opened my eyes; I was lying before the high place. The cramp was gone. My wolf was calm. I scrambled to my feet and looked up to the high place. The priest was no longer there. Alpha Coltan was no longer there.

I looked down to the stem of the high place and saw them: Alpha Coltan, Rasputin, and William, standing in a long stretch with the ten alphas of the neighboring packs.

Everywhere was silent, though it was still full of nobles and low-lives like me. No one was saying anything. I tucked my hair behind my ears and bowed my head.

"I think there is a mistake here!" Alpha Colten thundered. "This wretch cannot be my mate!"

No one dared say a thing. Not even the alphas. I wonder who the heck was the wretch he was referring to. I am one of the wretches by the way, but wretched people like me can't smell such privilege of even getting rejected by Alpha Colten.

But what the heck brought me to the front line? The front line was meant for the nobles. Oh, was it because I was unconscious the other time?

I slowly stepped back, but my eyes met Alpha Colten's. He doesn't look like he wants to either move or stay. It seemed his rage had tripled at the sight of me. It seemed I disgusted him more than anything anyone or institution on planet earth has ever considered disgusting.

But seriously, what the heck brought me to the front line?

I stopped backing off, anyway. I stayed back. But fuck!

"I think the goddess made a mistake. Look at her!" Alpha Colten yelled again.

"Do not mock the goddess." The priest, Rasputin, stepped out of the file. "The goddess made no mistake."

Rasputin's eyes met mine. Why the heck is he looking at me in the face? Were they talking about me? Oh, good fucking lord, I might be the one Alpha Colten was yelling at.

I decided to back off at all costs, even if it would cost my head. For the moon's sake, the earth was supposed to open and swallow me at this moment. I backed off once more, but the rage in Alpha Colten's eyes grew.

"What is your name, wretched thing?"

I looked around. I was surrounded by nobbles. The wretched class, my class, was at the back. So, I knew without being told that the query was for me.

"Kieran," I answered in a soft tone. "My name is Kieran Medici."

He nodded gently and walked up to me, his strong scent filling up my lungs. My hands trembled, and my legs nearly gave up. I've never felt that way before any man. But before him, I couldn't tell if it was out of fear or out of something stronger that I felt the earth should open and swallow me whole.

"Kieran Medici," he said, bold and loud. "You are a disgusting low-life. You are not fit for me. You do not have what it takes in beauty and in knowledge, and nobility to be my mate. I hereby..."

He paused for a while. Then, his words echoed once more.

"I hereby reject you as my mate!"

His words puzzled me. Was I his mate in the first place? Was that why I felt my wolf rumbling inside? Was that why I couldn't even stand before him?

"Kieran Medici, what do you have to say?" The priest, Rasputin asked.

"Come on," Alpha Colten turned to him. "Does she have a choice?"

"I accept the alpha's judgment," I said almost immediately. Yes, I do have a choice here. I choose my safety and sanity over my demise.

"In that case," Alpha Rogan stepped out. "I propose to take the rejected mate as mine."

"You don't have to, Rogan," Alpha Colten sneered like an enraged beast about to devour its meal. "Not under my watch, Rogan, will you feed on my vomit."

Alpha Alfred stepped out.

Alpha Colten looked at him like he was an equal. Maybe, he's an equal indeed.

"Not you, Frost!" Alpha Colten growled with the snare of a tiger about to pounce.

Alpha Alfred smiled and took a deep breath.

"You just rejected her." Alfred spat.

"Not a thing to bother about, friend." Colten cracked a finger.

The rest of the alphas looked at each other and remained silent. They seemed not to match Colten's aura and thus, were not willing to mess with him, but Alfred was ready. He removed his gloves and dropped them to the floor.

"You mocked the goddess for blessing your ass with that beauty, and now, you stand in my way to possess her." Alfred sneered.

Rogan stepped in between Colten and Alfred. Both of them seemed greater than he was, but he was brave. That's what I was starting to love about him. his bravely. He just made me look like a thing.

"Don't tell me you will fight over a..."

"Shut up and stay out of this, young alpha." Colten's tone was not friendly.

Alfred gazed at his gloves on the floor. I can't imagine he dropped those pieces of luxury on the floor because he wanted to challenge Alpha Colten.

But what I can't tell was if he dropped it because he wanted to defend the moon goddess or he wanted to defend me.

"Enough of this," Rasputin chirped in. "The meeting is over. She is Colten's to deal with. So, let's call it a day."

The three alphas didn't flinch until Alfred picked up his gloves and wore them. Rogan nodded gently and returned to the file, while Colten and Alfred battled with glare for a while before they made it back to the file.

"The alpha rejects his option. We meet here next full moon, or the alpha will have to select a bride of his likeness!" Rasputin hollered.

To be continued!