CHAPTER 5
875 Words
Prove it.”
Rowan frowned.
“Prove what?”
“That you’re her son.”
Rowan let out a short breath.
“And how exactly do you expect me to do that?”
Lyra’s eyes gleamed faintly.
“There’s a very simple way.”
Marcus immediately understood.
“Oh no,” he muttered.
Rowan looked between them.
“What?”
Lyra stepped back into the clearing.
“Fight me.”
The entire pack erupted into excited murmurs.
Rowan blinked.
“You’re serious?”
Lyra shrugged casually.
“If you really are Selene Nightfang’s son… you’ll have wolf blood.”
Her gaze sharpened.
“And wolf blood doesn’t stay quiet when it’s challenged.”
Marcus leaned closer to Rowan with a sympathetic expression.
“Good luck.”
Rowan sighed.
“You people are insane.”
Lyra smirked faintly.
“Probably.”
Then she stepped into a fighting stance.
“So?”
Rowan rolled his shoulders.
“Fine.”
Marcus shouted happily.
“Oh this is going to be fun.”
Rowan stepped into the circle.
Lyra watched him carefully.
Most humans would have looked terrified.
Rowan looked annoyed.
Interesting.
“Last chance,” she said calmly. “Walk away.”
Rowan cracked his knuckles.
“Not happening.”
Lyra smiled slightly.
“Alright then.”
Marcus raised his arm dramatically.
“Begin!”
Rowan lunged first.
Rowan’s fist cut through the cold morning air.
Lyra barely moved.
She tilted her head slightly and caught his wrist with effortless precision.
The force of the impact should have pushed her back.
It didn’t.
Instead, Rowan felt the shock travel up his own arm.
His eyes widened slightly.
Lyra’s grip tightened.
“You punch like a human,” she said calmly.
Marcus chuckled from the sidelines.
“Told you.”
Rowan tried to pull his arm free.
Lyra didn’t let go.
Her silver eyes searched his face carefully.
She could feel it now.
The energy inside him.
Wild.
Untrained.
Sleeping beneath the surface like a beast waiting to wake.
Her wolf stirred uneasily.
Dangerous.
Rowan twisted his body suddenly and drove his elbow toward her ribs.
Lyra released his wrist and stepped back smoothly.
The attack missed her by inches.
The pack members watching the sparring circle began murmuring.
“He’s fast,” one of them whispered.
“Too fast for a human.”
Marcus folded his arms.
“Interesting.”
Rowan straightened slowly, flexing his fingers.
Something felt wrong.
Or maybe…
Right.
Too right.
His heartbeat thundered in his ears.
His senses felt sharper.
Clearer.
He could hear every breath from the wolves surrounding the clearing.
Every rustle of leaves in the trees.
Every drop of dew sliding down blades of grass.
Lyra noticed the change immediately.
“There it is,” she murmured.
Rowan frowned.
“What?”
Lyra stepped forward again.
“Your wolf.”
Rowan blinked.
“I don’t have a—”
Pain exploded through his chest.
He staggered back with a sharp gasp.
Marcus instantly moved forward.
Lyra raised a hand, stopping him.
Rowan clutched his chest, breathing heavily.
“What… the hell… was that?”
Lyra’s voice remained calm.
“Your instincts.”
Rowan’s jaw tightened.
“I told you I’m not a were—”
Another surge of pain tore through his body.
His muscles tensed violently.
His vision blurred.
Then sharpened again.
But different this time.
Brighter.
Clearer.
The colors of the forest seemed deeper.
The scents stronger.
Rowan inhaled sharply.
“What is happening to me?”
Lyra watched carefully.
“Your wolf is responding.”
Marcus leaned toward her slightly.
“Should we stop this?”
Lyra shook her head.
“No.”
Rowan dropped to one knee.
Sweat beaded across his forehead.
He could hear something now.
Not outside.
Inside.
A sound.
Low.
Deep.
A growl.
Rowan squeezed his eyes shut.
“No…”
The growl grew louder.
More demanding.
Lyra stepped closer slowly.
“Listen to it.”
Rowan glared at her.
“Are you insane?”
“Yes.”
She smiled faintly.
“But that’s not the point.”
Another wave of energy surged through Rowan’s body.
His hands slammed into the dirt as he tried to steady himself.
His nails dug into the ground.
Marcus blinked.
“Uh…”
Lyra’s eyes widened slightly.
Rowan’s nails had grown.
Not claws.
But sharper.
Stronger.
“Impossible,” Marcus whispered.
Rowan’s breathing became ragged.
His muscles trembled violently.
Inside him…
The wolf pushed harder.
Let me out.
Rowan gritted his teeth.
“No!”
Lyra crouched in front of him.
“Stop fighting it.”
Rowan looked up at her with furious eyes.
“I don’t even know what it is!”
Lyra leaned closer.
Her voice dropped to a whisper.
“Your birthright.”
For a moment the forest fell completely silent.
Then Rowan roared.
Not a human sound.
Not entirely.
The wolves around the clearing froze.
Marcus’s eyes widened.
“Lyra…”
She was already standing.
Rowan’s body surged upward.
His strength exploded outward like a breaking dam.
He swung wildly.
Lyra caught his punch again—
But this time she slid backward several feet.
Marcus swore.
“That’s not human strength.”
Rowan stood there breathing heavily.
His eyes looked different now.
Darker.
Wild.
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