THE UNIQUE LUNA

CHAPTER 6: ROGUE WOLVES

It was almost dark when I finally decided to head home. The forest felt… alive. Different. Every rustle of leaves, every snap of a twig seemed deliberate, like the shadows themselves were watching me. My pulse thumped in my ears. Every step I took felt amplified, as if the world had grown sharper, more dangerous. The air tasted metallic, heavy, as though it carried warnings I couldn’t quite comprehend.

Footsteps followed. Soft, controlled, almost hidden. I knew who they were—werewolves. Rogues. They were still hunting. My stomach twisted. How could they have lost them? How could anyone escape them?

A howl split the air. Not ordinary. It rolled through the forest like a tidal wave, vibrating beneath my feet. I froze, every nerve in my body firing at once. Dominant. Commanding. Terrifying.

“What… was that?” I whispered to myself. My voice sounded small and fragile in the vast, dark forest.

I forced myself to move, to step forward, but my heart pounded like a drum. I couldn’t stay here. I didn’t want to be anywhere near them. My fascination with werewolves had already destroyed my life once, and I wouldn’t let it happen again. Not to me. Not ever.

Then the smell hit me. Rotten. Foul. Dangerous.

Rogues.

They emerged from the shadows, circling me like predators closing in on prey. My breath hitched. Memories—vivid, raw, unrelenting—flooded my mind. Alexei’s laboratory. Cold metal. Screams. Blood. My chest tightened, and my hands trembled as I gripped a fallen branch.

“Back off!” I shouted, my voice cracking. “I’m done with all of you! Leave me alone!”

They didn’t stop. They never did.

Inside me, something stirred. Diane. Protective. Angry. Fierce. She twisted and clawed at the edges of my mind, screaming, Let me out!

“No…” I whispered, shaking my head. “I don’t want this. I can’t be… like that.”

A deep growl cut through the air. The rogues froze, ears pricked. Another group emerged from the shadows. Wolves. Real wolves. Controlled. Powerful. My chest constricted with awe and fear.

At the center, a massive black wolf. Not just large—colossal. Every muscle rippled beneath his fur, every movement radiating authority. Power emanated from him, suffocating and tangible, like the air itself had thickened around him. An Alpha.

Beside him, a brown wolf, smaller but still formidable. My heart stopped. Recognition jolted through me. The one who had saved me from Alexei’s laboratory.

Our eyes met. Recognition, memory, relief, fear, all tangled together in a knot I couldn’t unravel.

Then the rogues lunged.

Pinned to the ground, claws biting into my arms, one pressing close to my neck. Hostage. Leverage. I could feel their strength pressing into me, overwhelming, suffocating. I struggled, kicking, swinging the branch, trying to scratch, to bite, to do something. But they were too strong, coordinated, focused.

I looked at the black wolf. Why save me? I was just a human. A human who had survived when his mate had died. A human who had nothing to offer him.

A bitter laugh escaped me. “Go ahead,” I muttered. “They’re doing you a favor.”

Pain exploded as the rogue bit into my shoulder, but it barely registered. Not after Alexei. Not after everything. Not after the days of torture, of injections, of my body being experimented on and violated.

“Is that all?” I mocked weakly. “Aim for my head if you want me dead.”

The rogue hesitated. Mistake.

The brown wolf lunged. Everything became a blur. Teeth, claws, growls—the rogues were thrown back as he tore through them, growling, eyes flashing gold and dangerous, protectively shielding me.

The black Alpha moved next. Too fast. Too powerful. Within seconds, the rogues were down, bodies strewn across the forest floor, blood pooling in dark rivulets. Silence fell.

I didn’t flinch. Nothing seemed real anymore. My body felt numb, my mind frozen somewhere between disbelief and terror.

The brown wolf shifted to human form, every movement fluid. Concern softened his features as he looked at me. “Every time I see you,” he said quietly, “you’re hurt.”

I stared at him. Recognition, relief, fear, and a strange spark of hope all tangled together in my chest.

“D-Donna…?” I whispered.

Growls erupted around us.

“Watch your mouth!” someone snapped.

He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I’m her twin brother. Donnie.”

Donna’s brother. And yet… he had saved me.

Others shifted to human forms, surrounding us. Familiar faces. Classmates. Their eyes glimmered with anger, accusation, distrust.

“Why are you protecting her?” one snapped. “She’s responsible for Donna’s death!”

“She’s not!” Donnie shouted. “I saw her in that lab. She was a victim!”

“Then why is she here?” another growled. “Maybe she’s working with that doctor!”

“I’m not,” I said flatly. “Do what you want. Kill me if you must. I don’t want this life anyway.”

Silence.

A low growl rolled through the forest. Everyone froze.

The Alpha stepped forward. His eyes locked onto mine. Gold. Sharp. Piercing. Cold. Deadly. Filled with a weight that pressed down on me, suffocating, undeniable.

Before I could react, his hand shot out. Around my throat. Lifting me off the ground.

I gasped, choking, legs kicking instinctively. My chest burned. This was it. Finally.

“Go ahead…” I whispered, voice trembling. “Kill me…”

His grip tightened, and then… contact. Skin against skin. Shock ran through me like lightning. My body screamed, every nerve on fire.

His eyes flickered—blue, then gold. Confusion crossed his face.

He released me. I collapsed, coughing violently, dragging air into my lungs.

“What did you do to me?” he demanded, eyes sharp, unrelenting.

“I didn’t do anything!” I shot back, though my voice sounded strange, distant, almost alien to myself.

Inside me, Diane roared. Her voice shook the foundations of my mind, insistent, burning, alive: Mate.

I froze. My heart hammered. My chest constricted. My pulse raced faster than ever. Mate. Mate. Mate.

I couldn’t fight it. Couldn’t think. Couldn’t breathe. Something inside me ached with recognition, longing, terror. My hands shook, my knees trembled, and a low, raw heat spread through my veins.

Every fiber of me screamed it. The world narrowed to him. His presence pressed down on me, tangible, suffocating, consuming. My head spun. Thoughts and memories, everything I had endured—the pain, the loss, the terror of Alexei—paled against this raw, undeniable connection.

Mate.

I stumbled backward, almost falling. The ground felt unreal beneath me. My lungs ached from breathing too fast, from adrenaline, from fear. My hands clawed at my own chest as if I could hold back the force inside me.