Forsaken by the Pack, Claimed by the Alpha

For three years, I have not known true sleep.

As an Omega, my only purpose was to be the Soul Tether for our comatose Alpha. A blood rune carved into my spine kept his soul anchored to the living world. If I fell into deep slumber, he would die.

But the pack's future Luna, Selene, despised me. Wielding her father's political influence, she breached my warded sanctuary, claiming I was a fraud draining the pack's wealth with a fake magical bond.

While my healers were dragged away by her personal guards, she forced deadly Wolfsbane poison down my throat.

"Dig out the root of that ugly scar," she commanded the surgeon.

As my body violently shut down from the poison, they carved the magical rune right out of my neck with a burning silver scalpel.

I screamed as the silver melted my flesh. The pack warriors just watched, mocking the absurd idea that a lowly Omega could hold an Alpha's life.

They didn't care that I had sacrificed my sanity and endured endless exhaustion for him. As the brutal extraction snapped our tether, the agonizing wail of the Alpha's dying soul echoed through the medical tower.

I fell into a freezing darkness, certain we were both dead.

But when I finally opened my eyes days later, I wasn't in the afterlife.

The Alpha had awakened, his god-like golden soul projecting over my bed. And he had just sentenced Selene's entire bloodline to death for touching me.

The reckoning had begun.

Chapter 1

Elara POV:

The penthouse ward at the top of the Blood Moon Pack medical tower was always cold. The ancient temperature-control wards kept it that way, preserving the heavy magic saturating the air. I sat in the center of the room, surrounded by glowing moonstones. I was an Omega, the lowest rank in our werewolf pack. But for the last three years, I was the most important prisoner in this building.

Carved into the base of my neck, right over my spine, was a Binding Rune. It was a complex magical scar, drawn with blood and ancient magic. This rune was a Soul Tether. It connected my soul directly to Alpha Kaelen.

He was the Alpha of the Blood Moon Pack, but his physical body lay in a deep coma in the adjacent room. A rogue attack three years ago had severed his soul from his flesh. Now, his soul lived as a golden projection, a ghost of light.

He could only survive if I stayed awake.

If I fell into deep sleep, his soul would fade.

If I stayed conscious, he lived.

My White Wolf bloodline gave me immense mental endurance. I could survive on micro-rest-brief moments of stillness that never crossed into true slumber. But the cost was absolute. A year ago, a junior healer miscalculated a potion's potency. My focus lapsed, and I slipped into true sleep for three seconds. In that brief window, Kaelen's golden projection convulsed violently while his physical form in the medical pod went into cardiac arrest. The entire tower screamed into red alert. I woke to healers pumping adrenaline into my veins and the Chief Healer's hands shaking as he restarted Kaelen's heart. That was the night I understood: my consciousness was the solitary thread keeping our Alpha from oblivion.

I was his anchor to the living world.

Right now, Kaelen's soul projection was far away at the Northern Sanctuary. He was attending a tribal meeting of the global werewolf packs. I sat on my cushion, feeling the warm pulse of his energy through the rune on my neck. His scent, like a wild thunderstorm and dark pine trees, filled my nose.

Suddenly, the heavy silver doors of the penthouse crashed open.

The sharp click of heels preceded her approach. Selene, a high-ranking Beta from the Iron Claw Pack, entered. She was also the self-proclaimed future Luna of our pack-a title she had claimed through political pressure from her father, not through any bond with Kaelen. A Luna is the Alpha's mate and the mother of the pack. Selene wanted that title desperately. She wore a dark velvet dress, looking like a gothic queen from the old centuries. Behind her, the night guards looked down at the floor.

"Get out," Selene snapped at the guards, her voice dripping with entitlement.

The guards hesitated, looking at me and the glowing moonstones.

"I carry the Elder's ring by decree of the alliance council," Selene said coldly, holding up a silver ring. "My father's forces guard your eastern border. Question me again, and I will have you reassigned to the front lines. Get out."

The guards exchanged a look of helpless frustration, then bowed and left the room, closing the heavy doors.

Selene walked toward the energy ward. She looked at the expensive moonstones and rare healing herbs around me. Her face twisted with deep jealousy.

"Do you have any idea how many millions you drain from this pack every month, you dirty little stray?" she sneered.

"Selene, please do not step into the circle," I said quietly.

"Shut your mouth!" she yelled.

She kicked a large moonstone out of the circle. The magical blue light in the room flickered and died. The warm connection on my neck suddenly turned freezing cold.

"What are you doing?" I gasped, grabbing my neck. "The Alpha needs the energy!"

Selene lunged, twisting her hand into my hair and violently dragging me out of the runic boundary. I cried out as my knees hit the cold marble floor. She pulled a small glass vial from her pocket. The liquid inside was dark green and smelled like rotting earth. It was Wolfsbane mixed with liquid silver. Wolfsbane is a deadly poison to our kind, and silver is our ultimate weakness.

"You really think you control the Alpha's life?" Selene whispered, her eyes manic. "You're just a dog playing a parlor trick."

Her fingers dug mercilessly into my cheeks, forcing my jaw up. I struggled, but I was a weak Omega outside my magic circle. She poured the burning green liquid down my throat. It tasted like ash and battery acid. I coughed, choking as the poison hit my stomach.

Instantly, a heavy, dark fog rolled into my brain. My White Wolf blood tried to fight it, but the dose was too strong. I felt something I had not felt in three years. Deadly, heavy sleepiness.

The Binding Rune on my neck suddenly flashed with a bloody red light. It was a warning. The soul connection was breaking.

Selene raised her hand and muttered a dark witch's spell. She slammed her palm over my rune, forcing the red light to die.

The heavy silver doors burst open again. Silas, the Chief Rune Healer of our pack, ran into the room.

"Stop!" Silas screamed, his pupils contracting violently, the reflection of the red warning lights trembling in his irises. He raised his hands, trying to cast a healing spell to keep me awake.

Selene spun around, her heavy boot catching Silas square in the chest and sending him crashing to the floor. "Guards!" she shrieked toward the door. "Drag this traitor from my sight! He interferes with official pack business!" Two of her loyal guards-men her father had placed in our ranks-rushed in, grabbing the stunned Silas by the arms and hauling him into the hallway, slamming the door shut behind them.

She stepped heavily on his hands, breaking his spell gesture.

"You are hurting the Alpha's lifeline!" Silas yelled from the floor. "If she falls into deep sleep, his soul will scatter!"

"Oh, please," Selene laughed coldly. "This whole 'Soul Tether' myth is just your excuse to siphon funds. An Omega's biology can't anchor an Alpha. It's a scam, and I'm ending it."

Suddenly, a loud ringing sound echoed in Silas's pocket. It was a communication crystal.

"The Sanctuary!" Silas panicked. "The tribal doctors are using the Mind-Link network! They are sending an emergency distress call!"

Mind-Link is our telepathic network, a way for wolves to speak inside their heads. Selene's face turned pale for a second, but her pride took over. She pressed her Elder's ring to the wall panel.

"Override communication," Selene commanded. "Block all Mind-Links from the Sanctuary."

"Are you out of your mind?!" Silas cried.

Selene ignored him. She looked down at me. I was trying to use my fingers to draw a wakefulness rune on the floor. My eyelids felt like they weighed a thousand pounds. Selene lifted her heavy boot. The sole of her boot was lined with pure silver dust. She stomped down on my fingers.

The silver burned my skin like a hot iron, melting my flesh. I screamed, the pain echoing in the empty room. But the pain was not enough to fight the Wolfsbane. My vision turned black at the edges.

Deep inside my mind, a very faint voice echoed through the fading connection.

Elara...

It was Kaelen's Mind-Link. His voice was weak, trembling like a dying flame.

Stay with me... please...

"I am sorry," I whispered to the empty air.

My eyes rolled back. The last thing I felt was the complete silence in my soul.

Far away at the Northern Sanctuary, Kaelen's golden soul collapsed onto the frozen ground and did not shatter-but simply ceased to be, like a flame extinguished by a sudden gust of wind.

And for the first time in three years, I fell into the waiting dark.

Elara POV:

The Wolfsbane dragged me under, the sensation akin to wet sand filling my lungs and ears, muting the hum of the medical tower into a dull throb. The poison ran through my veins like ice water. For a werewolf, our inner wolf is our second soul. Normally, my White Wolf was a bright, warm fire inside me. Now, she was shivering, curled up in the dark, dying.

But the worst part was the silence. For three years, Kaelen's soul was always a hum in the back of my mind. Now, the connection was dead. It felt like someone had ripped out half of my heart and left a freezing hole.

Smack.

A sharp sting hit my cheek.

Smack.

My head was thrown to the side.

I slowly forced my heavy eyelids open. The bright medical lights blinded me. Selene was standing over me, her hand raised for another slap. Next to her stood a human doctor-one of several neutral practitioners contracted by the pack to avoid internal bias-holding a medical tablet.

"Get up, you miserable stray," Selene spat.

I tried to breathe, but my chest felt tight and heavy.

"Miss Selene," the human doctor said, his voice trembling. "Her vitals are crashing. She has a massive overdose of Wolfsbane in her system."

"She's faking it," Selene crossed her arms, rolling her eyes.

"We need to hook her up to the blood purifier immediately," the doctor insisted. "Or her organs will shut down."

"No," Selene ordered. "This Omega has been stealing our pack's resources for years by pretending to be sick. No more machines for her."

I tried to push myself up from the cold floor. My muscles shook violently.

"Please," I whispered, my throat dry and burning. "The rune array... turn it back on."

I reached blindly for the moonstones scattered on the floor. Suddenly, a tearing agony ripped across the back of my neck. The Binding Rune was starving. It needed the Alpha's aura to survive. Without Kaelen's energy, the magical scar was eating my own flesh to stay active. I screamed, clutching my neck. It felt like a wild animal was biting into my spine.

"Look at her neck!" the doctor gasped. "The rune is overheating! It is burning her skin! It will cause irreversible soul damage!"

"Good," Selene smiled coldly. "It is dark witchcraft anyway. Maybe I should just cut that ugly scar off her neck right now."

Bang. Bang. Bang.

A loud crashing sound came from the heavy silver doors. Someone was throwing their body against the metal.

"Open the door!" Silas's voice screamed from the hallway. His voice was raw and broken.

"Miss Selene, unlock the door!" Silas yelled. "My access has been revoked! The Sanctuary has sent twelve red-level howl alerts! The highest emergency!"

A red-level howl alert meant an Alpha had fallen.

"Alpha Kaelen has lost all connection!" Silas sobbed through the door. "We must restart the array! You are killing him!"

Selene's face twitched. She walked to the control panel by the door. She pressed her provisional Elder's ring against the scanner.

"System command," Selene said clearly. "Seal the penthouse. Lock out Silas and the entire rune medical team. Revoke their clearance."

The panel flashed green, and heavy metal bolts slammed into place, the metallic thud making her jaw slacken.

"No!" Silas pounded on the metal. "Selene, you stupid, arrogant girl! You are murdering the Alpha!"

"He is in a coma, Silas!" Selene shouted back. "He is safe in his medical pod!"

"You do not understand anything!" Silas roared, his voice filled with despair. "In the Alpha's life, this Omega is more important than you will ever be! She is his life!"

The room went completely silent.

Selene's gaze snagged on the heavy metal bolts, her shock turning into a dark, ugly rage. The idea that a low-ranking, stray Omega was more important than a pureblood Beta like her broke her pride.

The click of her heels preceded her approach. Her fingers dug mercilessly into my cheeks, forcing my jaw up. Before I could pull away, the suffocating weight of her high-beta aura pressed down on my chest, smelling faintly of bitter wine.

"More important than me?" she whispered. "You are nothing but a stray orphan."

"Miss Selene," the doctor warned, stepping back. "If you try to remove that rune by force, her soul will shatter. It is biologically impossible to survive."

"We will see about that," Selene stood up, wiping her hands on her dress. She looked down at me like I was a piece of trash.

"Tomorrow morning, I am calling a Pack Council," Selene announced. "A public trial. I will show everyone what a fraud you are."

She turned and marched toward the private elevator.

"Keep her locked in here without the stones," Selene told the doctor.

The elevator doors closed, leaving me on the freezing floor. The doctor looked at me with pity but did not dare to help. The Wolfsbane dragged me down again. I curled into a ball, holding my burning neck. I focused on the tiny, dying spark of my White Wolf inside me. I had to stay awake. If I completely surrendered to the dark, Kaelen would never come back.

And somewhere in the void between consciousness and oblivion, I felt him reaching for me-a golden thread so thin it was barely there, but still holding.

Elara POV:

The next morning came with no sunlight. I was strapped to a moving stone bed. Thick silver chains wrapped tightly around my wrists and ankles. The silver burned my skin, leaving black, smoking marks on my pale arms. Two large Warrior wolves pushed my bed into the Seventh Council Chamber.

The chamber was a massive, circular room built from dark stone. It looked like a gothic cathedral from the nineteenth century. The high seats were filled with the Elders and top Warriors of the Blood Moon Pack. But I noticed, with a sinking heart, that several senior Elders who had always supported the Alpha were absent-replaced by Iron Claw representatives wearing neutral expressions that did not reach their eyes. The air was heavy with the smell of old leather, sweat, and tension.

I was pushed to the center of the room, right under the bright magic lights. Selene stood at the front, wearing a formal black suit. She pointed a remote at a large magical screen on the wall.

"Take a good look at these financials," Selene's voice echoed off the vaulted ceiling. The screen showed lists of expenses.

"Every month, this Omega consumes five pounds of pure moonstones," Selene said loudly. "She uses the rarest healing potions from the Western Mountains."

The Elders murmured nervously, casting glances at the heavily armed Iron Claw mercenaries Selene had stationed at every exit. She had not taken the room hostage-she had simply made sure that anyone who might speak against her understood the cost.

"Why does an Omega get the Alpha's resources?" a Warrior muttered.

"It is a waste," another agreed.

They did not know the truth. The penthouse was a forbidden zone. Only Silas and Elder Kael knew the real secret of the Soul Tether.

An old Elder with a grey beard stood up.

"Selene, a public trial violates the ancient laws of the Moon Goddess," he said sternly. "Where is Elder Kael?"

"Elder Kael is visiting the borders," Selene lied smoothly. "My father's patrols reported rogue activity near the eastern pass. Elder Kael agreed to inspect the situation personally. He entrusted me to manage internal affairs in his absence."

The grey-bearded Elder's eyes narrowed. He opened his mouth to challenge her, but one of the Iron Claw mercenaries shifted his weight, the silver spear in his hand catching the light. The Elder closed his mouth and sat down.

Selene smiled. "As your future Luna, it is my duty to clean up the pack's internal rot. This girl is a rogue spy using black magic to drain our wealth."

She walked down the steps and stopped next to my bed. She slammed a thick piece of parchment onto my chest. It was a Confession of Heresy. It was filled with fake medical records and lies about black magic.

"Press your bloody thumbprint on this," Selene demanded. "Admit you are a thief."

I looked up at her. My vision was blurry from the Wolfsbane, but my mind was clear.

"No," I whispered. My voice was weak, but it carried in the silent room.

"If you cut this rune out," I took a shaky breath, "the Alpha... will die."

A loud burst of laughter erupted from the Warriors' benches.

"Did you hear that?" a Warrior mocked. "The Omega thinks she controls the Alpha's life!"

"She is delusional!"

They laughed because it sounded insane. In our world, an Alpha is a god. An Omega is dust.

Suddenly, a loud crash came from the back of the chamber. The heavy wooden doors burst open. Silas stood there, his clothes torn, his face covered in sweat and dirt. He was holding a large, glowing Soul Crystal in his hands. The crystal was flashing rapidly with a sickly grey light.

"Stop the trial!" Silas screamed.

Two guards immediately grabbed his arms, holding him back.

"The Alpha's soul has fractured three times in the last hour!" Silas yelled, fighting the guards. "The Sanctuary has started the highest level of soul-summoning! He is slipping away!"

Silas pointed a shaking finger at Selene.

"She poured Wolfsbane down the Omega's throat! That is attempted murder of our Alpha!" Silas roared.

The room fell into a shocked silence. Selene did not panic. She turned to the pack's law enforcers.

"Record Silas as a traitor," Selene ordered coldly. "He is an accomplice to this Omega's witchcraft. Lock him up."

The guards dragged Silas away. His screams echoed down the stone hallway until they faded.

Selene turned back to the crowd.

"I will prove to you all that this is a lie," Selene announced. She looked at the Chief Surgeon, an older wolf in a white coat standing nearby.

"Bring the silver knife," Selene commanded. "We will cut this fake rune out of her neck right now. In front of everyone."

The Chief Surgeon's face turned pale.

"Miss Selene," the surgeon stammered. "Her soul is unstable from the poison. Operating with silver violates every medical law. It is torture."

"Do it," Selene hissed, her voice low and dangerous. "Or by my authority as future Luna, I will have you and your entire bloodline exiled. You will be stripped of your wolf-form and cast into the barren lands, to live and die as nothing more than beasts."

The surgeon swallowed hard. His hands shook as he opened his medical kit. He pulled out a small, curved scalpel made of pure, shining silver. He walked slowly toward my bed. The bright lights above me felt like the sun. I closed my eyes, waiting for the end.

But somewhere deep in my chest, my White Wolf lifted her head and snarled. We were not done yet.