"Aria," he said softly. "Today is your birthday."
It wasn't a question, but I nodded nevertheless.
"The moon is full tonight," he added, his voice quiet. "You will attend the ceremony."
"Of course, Elder," I replied, puzzled. All eighteen-year-olds attended the ceremony. It was essential.
He leaned in, smelling gently. "You already feel it, don't you? "The change."
My heartbeat skipped. "What change?"
Elder Malin's eyes narrowed. "Interesting. "Very interesting." He reached inside his pocket and retrieved a little pouch. "Wear this tonight."
I accepted it hesitantly. Inside was a simple moonstone pendant with a leather cord.
"But this is for—"
"Wear it," he interjected. "Hide it under your clothes if you must, but wear it."
Moonstones were precious. They aided our connection to the Moon Goddess during ceremonies. However, they were only given to wolves from influential families (Alphas and Betas). Not Omegas like me.
"Why?" I questioned.
Elder Malin glanced at Mira before returning his attention to me. "Because someone is harboring secrets about you, child. And tonight, those secrets may be revealed."

~

I never mattered in our pack. Omegas like me serve, submit, and survive. We don't dream of love. We don't dream of power.

She was the future Luna. I was just the girl who watched from the shadows.

But everything changed on my 18th birthday.

I felt the bond. I met my mate.

One of the Alpha's sons.

But the Alpha has triplets, and I felt the mate bond with all three and it seems the three of them felt it too — three perfect warriors, three powerful Alphas, three secrets buried beneath the surface.

One of them is my destiny.

One of them is lying.

And one of them might be the death of me.

The Moon Goddess doesn't make mistakes... but this time, I think she might've given me too much to handle.

The Shadow Lord raised his hand, and I felt something dark and cold twisting around my mind like chains.


"No," I said, trying to fight it. "I won't let you control me.


"You don't have a choice," the Shadow Lord said. "Your father sold your soul to me years ago. Welcome to the darkness, Jaxon."


The last thing I saw before everything went black was Storm's sad eyes as he flew away from me, leaving me alone in the sky with the Shadow Lord's laughter ringing in my ears.


The soldier's scream cut through the battlefield like a knife.


I dropped the magical shield I'd been working on and ran toward the sound. A young fighter was lying on the ground, his leg twisted at an angle that made my stomach turn. Shadow power had burned through his armor like acid.


"Hold still," I said, kneeling beside him. "This is going to hurt, but I can fix it."


Chapter 169 - Chapter 169: The Healer's War