Chapter 1 ~Prologue~

The Luna's body shook violently, her hands gripping the Alpha's so tight her nails dug into his skin. Every breath she took was sharp, ragged, and trembling.

He stood beside her, jaw tight, chest heavy, eyes scanning the shadows as if danger itself had already arrived.

"We... we should have waited," the Luna whispered, voice shaking. "What if... what if they are... right? Dangerous?"

The Alpha's hands tightened around hers. "They are ours. That is all that matters. We protect them. Whatever comes, we protect them."

Her eyes darted to him, wide, fearful. "We are enemies by blood, we should not have mixed. What have we done?"

The midwife gasped, rushing forward. Before anyone could speak, the first cries shattered the den. The midwife lifted the first child-a boy into the air. Tiny chest heaving, skin pale and warm yet alive.

The Luna pressed him to her chest, voice trembling. "K... Kael is safe," she whispered. Relief pressed on her, fragile and fleeting.

Before anyone could breathe, another contraction ripped through her. She gasped, eyes wide. "Two... there's another?"

The midwife guided the second child into the world-a girl. Tiny, delicate, fists curling sharply. Her chest rose unevenly, and a low, almost a soft growl escaped her throat even in sleep. The Luna froze.

"What... what is she?" the Luna whispered. "I do not know... what we have done. I do not know what they carry."

The Alpha's hands rested on both children, tense, trembling. "We protect them. That is all we can do. No one outside this room can decide their fate."

The Luna shivered violently, blood spilling fast and unstoppable. Her body convulsed, then went still as the midwife cried out helplessly.

The Alpha roared, grief and rage colliding in his chest. He held the twins tightly, staring at the two fragile lives in his arms. The boy's chest rose and fell steadily, but the girl's tiny fists twitched sharply, low growls slipping from her throat.

************

The throne room was quiet, the Alpha sat alone, holding the cloth of his late Luna. His gaze was dark, fixed on nothing, mind replaying the events in the den. Rage still burned through him, raw and uncontrolled.

The door burst open. The Witch Doctor stepped in, eyes blazing, voice sharp and unyielding. "Alpha! Luna! You cannot ignore this. Hear me now!"

The Alpha straightened, chest tight, jaw clenched. "Step back. She is hurt. This is not the time for riddles."

The Witch Doctor's gaze cut through him like a blade. "Time? There is no time. You have already brought chaos into the world. Do you not see what you have done? The union of Lycan and Werewolf... it has awakened what should never have existed."

The Alpha's hands tightened around the twins. "I do not understand your meaning. Explain, or leave."

Her lips curved, a cold, terrible smile. "You do not understand, Alpha. You never could. You think you hold power in these arms, but it is only a beginning. The boy and the girl... they carry storms in their blood. Fire and shadow. One will rise and one will burn. One will bring salvation, the other... destruction. The balance is broken."

"I will not let you threaten my children," the Alpha growled, stepping forward. "Speak carefully, witch, or your life ends here."

The Witch Doctor laughed, a sound sharp and bitter. "Threaten me? You could not even protect the mother who bore them." She paced but he eyes were fixed on the alpha. "Your strength and your rage are nothing. You are too late to stop what is coming. You cannot kill fate, Alpha. You cannot kill what is already born."

The Alpha's hands trembled with a mixture of rage and fear. "What do you mean?"

She stepped closer, voice dropping, cold and commanding, every word hitting hard like stone. "I mean the children must not survive. Their blood... their union... it will unravel everything you hold dear. You will see death walk beside them. You will see destruction where there should be life. And when the world trembles, you will know it began with you."

Before he could react, the bodyguard entered, dragging the struggling Omega into the room. She fought, claws flexing, eyes wild with desperation.

"She tried to kill them," the bodyguard said sharply. "Almost succeeded. I caught her."

The Omega sobbed, voice trembling. "I... I made a promise to the Luna. She begged me... I had to..."

The Alpha's claws unsheath as he walked slowly, circling the omega. One swipe, and the Omega fell still, blood splashed against the stone floor. He spoke coldly, his voice like steel. "Do not test me."

The Witch Doctor's laughter rang out, cruel and sharp. "You think that changes anything? You cannot protect them. Their blood... it will awaken storms. Death walks beside them. You cannot stop what is coming!"

Before she could finish, the bodyguard moved fast, striking her down. Her body hit the floor, but even as she fell, her words spilled like a curse, dark and venomous:

"The hybrid heart cannot serve two masters. One must fall or all shall fall..."