The Rise Of The Forsaken Luna

BRIANA

At the moment I woke, my body ached all over, leaving me sore and a little dizzy. Blinking against the light, I looked around the familiar room, and despite my exhaustion, a smile crept onto my lips. Last night had been one of the most important nights of my life. I had finally turned eighteen. The pack had welcomed me as an adult, and I'd been told my training to become the next beta would begin soon.

I inhaled deeply, drawing in the scent still clinging to the pillow beside me. Drake. His scent-pine mixed with fresh citrus-made my heart race. Drake Summer. My best friend since childhood. My constant sparring partner. My partner in every game and challenge. And now... my mate.

The thought filled me with warmth. Drake and I had always gone toe to toe in training, neither of us ever backing down. He knew my strength, just as I knew his. I trusted him, trusted that even though he was still dating Laura, he would do what was right. He would tell everyone in Moonveil Park that I was his true mate.

A wide grin stretched across my face. Only last year, my life had shattered when my parents died, sacrificing themselves to save Alpha Marcus and Drake from a surprise rogue attack at dawn. I had lost my family that day. But fate had given me another chance. Soon, I would be Luna, the future queen of this pack. In that role, I would finally gain another family-Alpha Marcus as my father-in-law, and David and Linda Bruce as my uncle and aunt.

Thinking about Drake, I turned to the empty side of the bed. My chest tightened when I saw only his t-shirt and boxer briefs left behind, carrying that same intoxicating pine-and-citrus scent. Where had he gone?

Frowning, I reached out to him through our mind link. The connection should have been easy, but something blocked me. My heart thumped hard. I tried again, more desperate this time, but still... nothing. Silence.

Confusion and unease settled over me. Why couldn't I reach him? That shouldn't even be possible. Pushing away my nerves, I decided I'd find him face-to-face and talk through what came next. Pulling on the clothes he'd left for me, I dressed quickly. I was just about to rise from the bed when the door slammed open.

Laura Cross stormed in, flanked by her loyal followers.

"Well, if it isn't the little home-wrecker," she sneered, taking a deliberate step forward.

My muscles tightened as I glared at her, anger flashing hot inside me. If anyone was the home-wrecker, it was her.

"Show some respect for your future Luna," I snapped, my voice sharp. "I am Drake's mate."

Shock flickered across her face, quickly replaced by raw fury. Laura had hated me from the first day she'd arrived in Moonveil Pack. She wasn't born here, she was the daughter of the alpha of Blood Oath, the largest and most feared pack in the region. Ten years ago, Alpha Marcus had made a deal with her father, and Laura had been sent to live here.

When she turned fourteen, she started dating Drake, and from that moment on, she had made it her mission to torment me. Why? Simply because I was close with Drake and Peter Wood.

"You will never be Luna of Moonveil Pack!" she screeched, her voice high-pitched with rage. "That title belongs to me, and it always will!"

I opened my mouth, ready to demand what she meant, but before I could utter a word, her minions lunged at me.

Pearl, the strawberry-blonde she-wolf, seized my hair and yanked me off the bed, slamming me hard against the floor. The bitter, burning scent of wolfsbane clung to her fingers. A furious growl ripped from my chest. Wolfsbane. The most dangerous poison to our kind. And they dared use it against me-a ranked wolf?

Snarling, I lashed out with my foot, the heel slamming into Pearl's stomach. She flew backward, crashing into Laura with a sickening thud. Both went tumbling. But leaving myself open had consequences.

The other two she-wolves, Ruby with her fiery red hair and Prism with her pale blonde locks, pounced on me. Their claws, coated in wolfsbane, tore into my skin.

Agonizing fire burned through me as the poison seeped into my veins. My strength began to falter, but I refused to give in. I clawed and struck back as best as I could. At the same time, I sent an urgent S.O.S. through the pack link-only to be met with a wall of silence.

Another block.

Dread coiled in my stomach. The only one who could block me so completely was the alpha himself.

Ruby's claws swiped for my face. I dodged at the last second, but her nails still grazed my shoulder. The poison spread faster, dragging my strength away with every heartbeat.

"What the hell is going on?" a deep voice thundered from the doorway.

Relief swept through me as my eyes darted up. Alpha Marcus stood there, his piercing grey eyes blazing as he took in the chaotic scene.

Laura was already hiding behind him, her lip jutted out in a pout, a dark bruise forming on her cheek from Pearl's earlier collision.

"Briana attacked Laura," Ruby said quickly, her voice laced with false innocence.

A snarl ripped from my throat. I turned to the alpha, ready to tell him the truth, but his answering growl roared louder, pressing down on me with suffocating dominance. The weight of his power forced me to bow my head, my body trembling against my will.

"I will not tolerate anyone attacking a visiting delegate," Alpha Marcus snapped. His voice was sharp and merciless.

Before I could speak, his iron grip clamped around my wrist. His eyes glazed over as he linked the pack. He was calling them.

Panic spiked in my chest.

In an instant, Marcus dragged me from his son's room, down the hallway and three flights of stairs, before shoving me out the heavy Moon doors of the five-story pack house. I stumbled, barely catching myself before I hit the ground.

I lifted my head, glaring at the man my parents had died protecting.

And then it struck me. His glazed eyes weren't just fury, they were a message. He had summoned the pack to gather.

For a trial.

My blood turned to ice as dread wrapped its claws around me.

Something had shifted overnight. Something dark.

And I was at the very heart of it.

BRIANA

"Briana, you are accused of attacking my future daughter-in-law, Laura. For this offense, you are hereby stripped of your rank and cast down to omega," Alpha Marcus declares, his voice echoing through the gathering.

My whole body stiffens. The words crash into me like a stone dropped in deep water. My title as beta-my pride, my identity-is ripped away, replaced with the lowest rank among wolves. Omega. My chest tightens as the new weight settles on me.

And the worst part? He didn't even bother to ask what really happened. Marcus only saw the end of a fight where I was fending off Laura's friends-Clara and Prisy.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" the alpha continues, his gray eyes like slabs of cold stone. This was not the man I grew up respecting.

I swallow hard, anger mixing with despair. "If I tell you the truth, will you even believe me?" My voice shakes, but my eyes stay on his.

"Of course," Marcus replies too quickly, too smoothly.

I inhale, catching the bitter scent of dishonesty clinging to his words. He's protecting Laura. That much is clear. But it isn't only about him believing me-it's about whether the pack will.

"I didn't attack Laura," I answer sharply, glaring at him. My gut twists because something about this feels deeply wrong. My mind reaches for Drake, my mate, but the link is blocked. I try pushing images toward him, desperate for him to see the truth, but it's like shouting into a wall.

At last, I spot him in the crowd. His eyes meet mine-only for him to look away, guilt flashing across his face. The sight stabs me deeper than any claw. He was supposed to be mine. He was supposed to stand with me.

"I was only getting ready to meet Drake when Laura and her friends attacked me," I say louder, forcing my voice to carry. "Look at me. Look at my wounds. Smell the wolfsbane in the blood dripping from my skin. They left these marks."

Around me, sneers falter. Wolves sniff the air, their expressions shifting to shock. Some even glance at Drake. They can smell it now-my mate's scent clinging to me beneath the wolfsbane.

"Why would Laura attack you?" Alpha Marcus scoffs, as if my story is laughable.

I stare at him, stunned. Can he not smell his own son all over me? Or does he simply refuse to admit it?

"Because your son is my mate," I say flatly, my voice cutting through the air like a blade. My gaze flicks to Drake, waiting for him to confirm it.

His head snaps toward me, fists clenching. For a moment, I think he'll speak up, but instead, he throws me a glare-cold and sharp.

"We found out the moment I turned eighteen yesterday," I continue before he can deny it. My tone hardens, though my heart cracks. "We spent the day together in his room. The pack can smell him on me."

"You're lying. We are not mates!" Drake suddenly shouts, fury blazing as he storms down the steps.

Two wolves rush forward, blocking him before he can reach me. His anger cuts deeper than his words. Only last night, he had whispered promises of love. Now, he stands across from me, denying me.

"I am not lying, and you know it," I cry out, my voice trembling with both rage and heartbreak.

"Drake," Alpha Marcus says firmly, turning to his son. "Briana turned eighteen last night, and the two of you disappeared from her party. She wears your clothes. She smells of you."

For a heartbeat, I think he'll side with me. But then Marcus turns back, his eyes hard as iron, and all hope drains from me.

"Unfortunately, Briana, my son and Laura were promised to each other long ago," he says coldly. "Our packs must unite through marriage. Without it, Alpha Norman Joss will destroy us for our land."

Gasps ripple through the crowd. My heart sinks. I think of last night-how I trusted Drake, how I gave myself to him, believing in the bond the goddess gave us. Believing in us.

"What do you mean I can't be with my mate?" I scream, my voice raw. "The goddess chose him for me! There won't be another!"

"You heard me," Marcus replies without a shred of pity. "Reject him-or let him reject you."

Rage floods through me, burning hotter than the wounds across my body. My chest heaves as I turn to Drake, my supposed mate. "No. I will not reject you."

"Then Drake will do it-for the good of Moonveil Pack," Marcus says calmly, motioning to his son.

The world stills. I shake my head, ready to beg, ready to fight, but before I can, Drake pushes past the wolves restraining him. His eyes are blazing, his mouth set.

"I, Drake Summer, reject you, Briana George, as my mate. May the goddess have mercy on you."

The words tear through me like fire and steel. A scream rips from my throat as pain explodes in my chest, shattering my soul. I fall to my knees, clutching at the pieces of a bond I never wanted to lose.

My mate chose another. My mate chose duty over me.

My mate chose a pack whore over the bond the goddess gave us.

BRIANA

Suddenly, Drake lets out a piercing scream, his hand flying to his neck as if he's trying to tear something off. Through my tear-blurred eyes, I see it-his skin searing with the burgundy-red mark of betrayal. A jagged heart, split with three harsh lines, burns itself into his flesh.

The pack gasps. Some wolves stare in shock, others whisper in horror, and a few... a few actually smirk as if enjoying my pain.

Agony shoots through me like fire. The mate bond that we sealed last night, when Drake held me close and made love to me, now twists and shatters inside me. Every breath feels like knives. Each heartbeat feels like my chest will split open. I clutch my stomach, crying, choking on the pain, waiting for the fire to consume me whole.

And then-just like that-it fades.

I force my eyes open. Drake is standing straight now, breathing hard, the torment on his face gone. He looks at me coldly, his voice rough and final.

"We are no longer mates, Briana."

The words slice through me deeper than claws ever could.

My rage pushes past my heartbreak, boiling over. Without thinking, I lunge at him. My hands twist into claws, and before he can move, I rake them across his face. His scream tears through the air as his blood splatters warm against my fingers. A scar-my scar-will forever mark him.

And why shouldn't it? He knew. He knew he was promised to Laura Joss for years. He knew our love was forbidden. Yet he still took my innocence last night. Still made me believe we had forever.

Strong arms wrap around me, pulling me back before I can strike again. I breathe in the familiar scent of David, Drake's uncle by marriage, my godfather, and my late father's closest friend. He murmurs in my ear, steady and calm, "Briana, enough. Stop. He'll carry that scar for life. You've done enough."

I tremble, shaking with fury, but I let David's words sink in. My chest heaves as I drag in a deep breath, forcing myself to still.

Then Alpha Marcus steps forward, his voice booming with anger.

"Briana George! You have disgraced this pack!"

My head snaps toward him. Rage lights my veins. He's the one who disgraced me, stripped me of my beta rank-the last gift I had from my parents before they were killed last year. He made me an omega without hearing my truth. He made Drake reject me.

I glare, my voice breaking but fierce.

"No, Marcus. You and your son are the disgrace of Moonveil Pack! My parents gave their lives for you-for this pack-and this is how you repay me?"

The pack stirs uneasily, whispers of disapproval rising against Marcus and Drake.

Marcus snarls, spit flying as he rages.

"It is because of your parents' sacrifice that I allow you even this much!"

His eyes blaze with hatred as he delivers the final blow.

"Briana George, you are no longer a member of Moonveil Pack. You have until midnight to leave this territory, or you will be hunted as a rogue and put down."

The words crash over me like thunder. I feel the pack bond snap, like my very heart being ripped apart. My body shudders, and for a moment, it feels like my soul stops breathing. The weight of omega shackles falls away, and my true beta blood flares in my veins once more.

In half an hour, I've gone from beta... to omega... to nothing but a rogue.

"Marcus, this is madness!" David roars back at the alpha.

But Marcus only sneers.

"No, David. This is justice. If you think I have gone too far, then leave with her. See how long you last."

David opens his mouth, but another voice cuts through the air.

"Then we will leave."

Everyone turns.

Linda Bruce, Marcus' elder sister, strides forward with her head held high. Her figure wavers before my eyes, blurred by the waves of pain and rejection crashing through me. But her voice is strong, unshakable.

"Moonveil Pack is nothing but liars and snakes. I will not stand by my brother while he destroys what our family built."

I shake my head weakly, wanting to protest, to stop her from severing her family bond for my sake. But my legs buckle. My vision darkens.

David catches me before I hit the ground, holding me firmly against his chest. His voice is low, steady, for me alone.

"Don't fight it, Briana. Rest. If Linda says we're leaving, then we're leaving."

I try to push away, to stay awake, but the pain, mixed with the lingering wolfsbane in my blood, drags me under. My eyelids fall shut, and the last thing I hear is Linda's voice rising in a storm of defiance against Alpha Marcus.

Then darkness swallows me whole.