The Alpha King's Rejected Luna

The pack hall was silent. Every eye in Moon Stone Pack was on me. Two hundred wolves. Elders on high chairs with grey beards. Warriors along walls with arms crossed. Pups peeking from behind mothers. And in the middle, under bright crystal lights that burned my eyes, stood me — barefoot, in a cheap white dress, shaking like leaf in wind. I, Liam Stone, Beta of Moon Stone Pack, reject you, Aira White, as my mate and Luna. The words broke my heart in half and made my knees weak. I stood frozen. My dress was the one Mum Liora sewed for me last year before she died. She stayed up three nights sewing because we could not afford new cloth from market. Her fingers hurt from needle. She said, You will wear this when you find your mate, my star, you will be beautiful. Now the hem was dirty from my bare feet running on cold marble. My hands shook so bad I had to clutch thin fabric. Eighteen today. Today my wolf was supposed to wake fully. Today was supposed to be happiest day. My wolf Luna whimpered inside me, low, sad, like wounded pup. She had been silent for eighteen years. No voice, no growl. This morning when my scent finally came after years of nothing — vanilla and rain and moonlight — she whispered, mate, we have mate, we are not alone. Now she was fading. I felt her curling into ball inside chest, cold. I am Aira White. Omega. Lowest rank in Moon Stone Pack. Wolfless since birth, or so everyone thinks. I help in the pack kitchen from five am to ten pm every day. I sleep in storage room beside rice bags because Omegas do not get rooms. Since Mum Liora died last winter, coughing on cold floor because no healer would come for an Omega — healer said herbs are only for ranked wolves — I have no one. No family. Just this silver crescent moon pendant Mum made me promise never to take off. She held my face with last strength and said, Hide, Aira. Hide your eyes, hide your blood, survive. Promise Mum. And Liam — Beta Liam Stone — handsome, green eyes like forest after rain, boy I cared for since ten when he gave me bread — Goddess said he was my fated mate this morning. My heart felt joy. I thought finally someone will care for me. Now he was letting Goddess gift go in front of everyone. Please, I whispered, tears burning, voice cracking so everyone heard. Goddess paired us, Liam. Please do not do this. I waited ten years. Liam looked at me with cold eyes. He wore Beta uniform, black and silver, new Alpha aura around him because he shifted last week into huge grey wolf, bigger than most warriors. His scent was pine and dominance. Goddess made a mistake, he said loud, so all two hundred wolves heard. I will be Alpha one day when Alpha Darius retires next year. I cannot be mated to a wolfless Omega who helps in kitchen. I deserve a strong Luna, daughter of Alpha, not a kitchen helper. An Omega cannot be my Luna. You would make our pack weak. Go back to kitchen where you belong. The crowd gasped. Whispers. Phones recording. Sera, the Alphas daughter, who always disliked me because Liam once smiled at me, laughed. Omegas should know their place — on the floor, Aira. Go back to kitchen. Beta will never choose a kitchen helper as Luna. Alpha Darius nodded. Beta made right choice. Pack law says Beta must have Beta rank or above for Luna. Omegas cannot be Lunas. It is law for one hundred years. Go back to kitchen, Aira. My knees shook. I fell hard on marble floor. Hurt on palms. The mate bond — golden thread that appeared this morning — broke with fire in my chest. I cried, clutching my heart. Rejection pain. Worse than silver knife. Luna howled once, then went silent. Wolfless rejected Omegas need second chance mate in twenty four hours or they fade. I would be alone tonight. Blood came from my nose. Vision blurred. I thought of Mum Lioras last words. Aira, hide pendant, hide eyes, survive. Your father was Royal. She died in my arms at two am, cold. I buried her myself with kitchen knife digging in frozen forest behind pack house because pack would not give shovel for Omega. My hands hurt digging. I could not breathe. I ran barefoot out of hall into cold night forest, past warriors. Rain started. Heavy October rain soaked my white dress, muddy, clinging. Bare feet cut on sharp stones. I fell under old pine tree behind kitchen where I used to hide to cry. Why give me a mate if you make me Omega? Why take Mum Liora and leave me alone? Why, Moon Goddess, why? My pendant — Mums silver crescent moon pendant — burned cold, then hot, then cold again on my neck, pulsing. Then forest went dead silent. Birds stopped. Rain sound vanished. Wind stopped. A howl shook sky and ground, so deep my bones shook. Not normal pack howl. Ancient. Deep. Alpha King howl that made trees shake, made birds fly away. I looked up through rain, mud on face. On hill, in mist, stood a huge black wolf. Twice size of Liams grey wolf. Three times bigger, like horse. Scar across shoulder glowing silver. Eyes gold like lava. Air around him froze rain into snowflakes. Power rolled off him. Kael Blackthorn. Alpha King of Blackthorne Kingdom. Ruler of twelve packs. The Cursed Alpha King. Twenty five. Never defeated. Story says he was cursed at ten when he killed Razor Fang Alphas son in war. Witch cursed his bloodline: every Luna he touches leaves in one month, pups do not stay, bloodline ends. Five girls accepted him before, all left coughing, cold even in summer. That is why he has no Queen for five years. What is Cursed King doing in small Moon Stone Pack tonight? He was supposed to come tomorrow for Blood Moon inspection with his army of two hundred. His gold eyes scanned pack hall where two hundred wolves bowed low, heads to ground, shaking. Then gold eyes landed on me. In mud. Torn white dress. Time stopped. Rain stopped falling on me. I felt it — mate pull. Not weak like Liam. Strong like river, fire in veins, warm in chest. Second chance mate bond, stronger, hotter, burning veins gold, making pendant burn white hot, making Luna who was fading suddenly HOWL loud inside me, happy howl, alive howl. His huge black wolf made sound so ground shook. He shifted in one breath — no slow painful shift like us that takes minutes and hurts. Instant. Man form. Tall. At least six five, giant. Black hair wet, bare chest, rain on muscles, abs like stone, black battle pants low on hips, boots muddy. Mark of Alpha King — golden crown with claws — glowing on chest, pulsing like heartbeat. Face scarred on jaw, strong, eyes pure gold. He walked down hill to me, barefoot in mud like me, ignoring rain, ignoring two hundred wolves staring. Two hundred wolves came out, bowing low. He ignored them all. He knelt in mud before me, eye level, rain dripping from hair to cheek. His scent — pine and snowstorm and male Alpha — so strong my knees would have been weak. Luna purred. He lifted my chin with rough hand. What is your name, little wolf? Voice deep, soft. A-Aira White... I said, shaking from cold and bond and fear and hope. He breathed near my neck, vanilla and moonlight, Mum said it smells like Royal. His gold eyes opened wide, then dark. Aira, he repeated, soft. My Aira. Mine. Luna inside me howled — happy howl, mate howl. Liam stepped forward, upset. My King, she is my— Kael turned head slowly to Liam. One look, flash of gold eyes, and Liam stepped back, choking from pure Alpha King pressure that made Beta fall to knees. She was yours. You rejected her in front of pack. You broke bond. You made her cry. You made her run in rain barefoot, Kael said, voice cold. Now she is MINE. Then he stood, pulled my small body up against his chest in one pull, face to his chest, bare feet dangling, dress torn. He turned to pack hall, to Alpha Darius shaking, to Liam on ground, to Sera pale white, and roared so loud hall windows shook, trees shook, wolves covered ears: BETA REJECTED HER. ALPHA ACCEPTS HER. SHE IS MINE NOW. NO ONE CALLS HER OMEGA AGAIN. NO ONE HURTS HER.