The Awakening Of The Lost Luna Princess

Chapter 10

MIRA POV

“I’d like to see you dare.” Asher said waiting for me to carry out my threat.

I picked up the sword and held it against my throat.

Did I want to die? No

But I’d rather die by my own hand than be killed by this big prick or even worse be made his pack member.

“Go on, slit your throat,” he encouraged.

“You would love that won’t you?” I snapped back sassily.

Chase looked between the two of us, a sigh escaping his lips as he shook his head. He knew there was no changing the King's mind once it was set. He gestured toward the open door, his warm smile completely gone, replaced by a look of utter bewilderment.

"Follow me, Mira. I promise this is better than killing yourself.”

“No,” I stated firmly.

“Oh, come on, you know he can disarm you in seconds and still make you a pack member. Let's get this over with before the King decides to change his mind and lock us both in the dungeon." Chase tried to reason with me.

I stood my ground for a second, my heart pounding as I looked at the exit. I started moving with Chase although I hadn’t fully changed my mind.

I tightened my fists and walked past Asher, making sure to glare at him one last time before following Chase out into the dark corridor.

Chase led me up to a hidden, ancient courtyard at the very top of the fortress. In the center stood a massive, glowing white stone carved with ancient werewolf runes. The air up here felt intensely magical, thick with the power of the Moon Goddess.

The silver runes on the ancient stone pulsed. I stared at the glowing white surface, my hand hovering inches away from the rock.

My chest tightened by the weight of the decision I was about to make.

"I refuse to do this," I said, my voice sharp and clear as I glared directly at Alpha King Asher.

"I am not joining your royal pack. You can't just force me to take your pack mark like a common slave."

Asher stepped forward. He crossed his arms over his chest, his eyes locking onto mine with an unyielding glare.

"You have no choice in this matter, Mira. You are in my territory now. You will do as I command."

"Or what?" I challenged, taking a step closer to him until my petite frame was entirely covered by his six-foot-four shadow.

"You'll kill me? Go ahead then. Snap my neck right here in front of your Beta. I would rather die with my dignity intact than bow down to a tyrant like you."

Chase looked between the two of us, a heavy, stressed sigh escaping his lips as he tightly gripped the silver dagger in his hand. "Mira, please. Just listen to reason for one second."

"No, Beta Chase!" I snapped, my hot-tempered nature flaring to life.

"He thinks he can control everything with brute force. He is an arrogant, muscle-bound brute who doesn't understand the word 'no'. I don't care how powerful he is. He doesn't own my soul."

Asher’s eyes narrowed into slits, a dangerous amber light flickering deep within his gaze as his wolf surfaced to the front of his mind.

The dominant pressure of his alpha aura increased instantly, crushing the air out of the courtyard and forcing my knees to tremble.

"Do not test my patience, little wolf. You are pushing me to my absolute limit."

I clamped my jaw shut, my breathing coming in short, ragged gasps as I fought against the weight of his power.

My mind raced furiously through my limited options.

If I stayed an outsider, I was entirely at his mercy. He could execute me in that basement weapon room at any moment, and no one in the kingdom would care about the death of a nameless Silver Crest omega.

But then, a realization hit me.

The laws of the werewolf kingdom were ancient and absolute. An Alpha King was legally bound to protect his own people. He could not execute or murder an official member of his own pack without a just cause or a formal trial before the high elders.

If I took the initiation ritual, I would no longer be a foreign prisoner. I would be a member of the Royal Pack.

He wouldn't be able to kill me just for throwing insults at his face without facing massive political backlash from his own people.

Joining his pack was a shield. It was the only way to ensure my physical survival, and it would give me the freedom to move around this place to plan a real escape later on.

I forced my racing heart to slow down. I swallowed my pride and looked up into his amber eyes, masking my thoughts behind a sarcastic smirk.

"Fine," I spat, my voice dripping with venom.

"If it will stop you from throwing a royal tantrum, I will join your precious pack. At least then I won't have to listen to you grunt like an uneducated beast all day."

Asher did not look satisfied by my submission. His jaw remained clenched tight, but he gave Chase a sharp nod.

"Place your right hand on the surface of the sacred stone, Mira," Chase said softly, stepping closer.

His warm eyes held a mixture of relief and lingering shock from our fierce verbal argument.

I took a deep breath and slowly pressed my bare palm against the smooth, cool face of the ancient rock.

The runes beneath my fingers felt ice-cold.

Chase moved quickly, he took my index finger and pricked it with the sharp tip of the silver dagger.

“Ah,” I gasped as a ting stinging pain erupted in my finger.

A single drop of my blood fell onto the white stone.

The runes instantly flared with a blinding silver light that lit up the entire courtyard.

A sudden rush of intense warmth flooded through my palm. It surged violently up my arm like liquid fire, spreading deep into my chest and wrapping around my beating heart. The magical bond snapped into place with a physical jolt that rattled my bones, firmly tying my soul to the deep, collective consciousness of the Royal Pack.

I’m sure everyone in the pack felt me.

The silver light faded back into the white stone, leaving the courtyard in total silence. I pulled my hand back, my breath hitching as the raw power of the pack link finally settled into the back of my mind. I was officially one of them.