Selena stood at the center of the pack house courtyard, her heart pounding in her chest like a war drum. The moon hung high, casting silver light over the dozens of wolves gathered to witness the Alpha's announcement.
She had dreamed of this day, the day her fated mate would claim her.
But instead...
Alpha Damien stepped forward, his dark eyes emotionless, his voice cold.
"I, Alpha Damien Black of the Bloodfang Pack, reject you, Selena White, as my mate and future Luna."
Gasps filled the air.
Selena froze. Her breath caught. Her world shattered.
> "W–What did you say?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.
Damien didn't blink.
> "You heard me. You're weak. You're not fit to stand beside me."
Tears welled in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. Not here. Not in front of the pack.
> "You'll regret this," she said, her voice shaking with pain, but burning with something else too.
Anger.
Something deep inside her stirred.
And that night, as she ran into the forest with nothing but her broken heart and bare feet, the Moon Goddess appeared to her in a dream.
> "Rise, my child," the voice echoed in her mind. "You are not meant to be his Luna…
You are destined to become a Queen."